Now or Never
by steph211
Summary: Empty. It was all Alison could feel right now. Maybe she could add terrified, upset, and completely sick to her stomach to that list; that seemed more accurate. She hadn't seem Emily in what felt like forever. The girls were missing and she was finally out of that shit-hole prison. She knew this was her time. She could finally save her mermaid and confess to her how she felt this e
1. Chapter 1

Empty. It was all Alison could feel right now. Maybe she could add terrified, upset, and completely sick to her stomach to that list; that seemed more accurate. She hadn't seem Emily in what felt like forever. The girls were missing and she was finally out of that shit-hole prison. She knew this was her time. She could finally save her mermaid and confess to her how she felt this entire time. She knew how she treated Emily. She knew how Emily looked at her, and cared for her, but most importantly she knew how much Emily loved her, and yet she still took advantage of her.

Alison stared blankly at her dark ceiling. "Where are you Em?" She asked herself aloud, wishing Emily could somehow telepathically answer. Alison watched as the hour hand on her clock slowly crept towards the 2. Her mind raced thinking of all the possibilities. Were they dead? Did A have them? If A did have them, what was A doing to them? She shook at the horrible pictures her mind created.

Suddenly, she jumped up, turned to her night table and switched on her light. Alison grabbed an empty notebook and a pen. This plan needed to be good. She would do anything to save her friends, especially her mermaid.


	2. Chapter 2

Emily's mind however, was focused on one thing: screaming. The room was silent, but her mind kept replaying the screams. The switches, the pressure, the uncertainty, and the guilt all played a part, but nothing was worse than the screams. When she first saw her friends' faces next to the switches she wasn't sure who to pick. Hanna was tough, but she couldn't hurt her best friend. Aria, was a small and mighty force, but hurting her didn't seem right.

And then there was Spencer. Spencer was the second most athletic and physically fit, behind Emily of course. Emily loved Spencer with all her heart but if there was one person who could handle the shock, she thought it would be Spencer. At first Emily picked no one, she refused to play A's game. But she shortly realized that by not hurting anyone, she was actually hurting all of her friends. As time ran out and Emily sat frozen, she was shocked when all of her friends screamed. The screams sent chills down her spine.

The next round, she knew she had to make a choice. Who would Ali pick she questioned? At the moment, Ali hated them all. It was their fault she was in prison after all. Emily wished for nothing more than to be freed from this sick and twisted doll house, and be in Alison's warm arms. She decided that if she got out of here alive, she was going to come clean and tell Ali she still had feelings for her.

There was some sexual tension between the two ever since Ali came back, but now Emily was sure of what she wanted. She didn't care about the past, all that could get her through this moment was thinking of her future with Alison DiLaurentis.


	3. Chapter 3

Alison was relieved when she opened her eyes and it was finally bright outside. Her clock chirped as it just reached 8 am. She didn't fall asleep until around 4 and by then she had physically no energy left, but that didn't stop her from creating what she thought was the best plan to save her friends.

She knew that she had to escape her house and all the police around her. They just needed a distraction. Despite it being right after sunrise Alison called the only degenerate she knew she could trust when she needed someone to "break into" a house: Noel Kahn.

He was the perfect distraction and for the most part, knew what he was doing. A very sleepy Noel Kahn answered the phone. "What could you possibly need from me at 8 in the morning?"

"I need you to break into my house tonight." There was no beating around the bush with these two. Their friendship was almost a business partnership…one based on breaking the law. "What time?" Alison appreciated that Noel didn't ask questions.

"7:30 just after sunset." Noel paused before he answered.

"Should I wear my hoodie?" Alison chuckled at the casualness of their conversation. If anyone else heard this they would think she was crazy. "Yes. Come in through the back, the cops are out front. Leave a note in my kitchen that says 'You can run but you can't hide'….and Noel?"

"Yeah?"

"Don't screw this up." She hung up the phone before he could answer. Now that her distraction was set in place, she needed to get the guys on board to help her find the girls.


	4. Chapter 4

Emily never realized how much she appreciated the loud beeping of her alarm clock until she was woken up every day for the the last week by sounds of that horrid siren. It pierced her ears and made her chest hurt. She jumped up, completely startled by the noise and the voice on the loud speaker. "Good morning, please exit your room for breakfast." Her door opened to the semi-lit hallway. She slowly got out of bed and stood in her doorway as her friends did the same. They all looked at each other, as if examining to see the damage they did to one another. No one spoke as they headed to breakfast.

The girls were greeted by Mona or should they say Alison? Mona/Alison was pouring them tea into fine China cups. Each girl had a plate too with biscuits. "Eat up girls, we have a big day ahead of us." Mona/Alison murmured.

"What's happening today?" Hanna asked. Mona/Alison smiled.

"Why don't you just do what you do best Han, and eat. Save your voice for the prom we're planning." Mona/Alison stared at her friend after the comment. She didn't mean it, but she had to play the part for Charles.

Emily took a sip of her tea and burned the roof of her mouth. She hated that Mona looked exactly like Ali. Mona was pretty, but she wasn't Ali pretty. She was just a substitute. Emily prayed every night that the real Alison never ended up here. When Emily was younger she dreamed about going to prom…and seeing Alison, dressed in an amazing gown…dancing…Emily's mind wandered for a brief moment and for a second she almost forgot where she was…almost.

The rest of their day went how it usually went. The only difference was today, the girls stood in a large empty room and began to plan what seemed like the world's worst/ most depressing prom. The entire time the girls were working, Emily spent her time wondering about Alison and what she was doing at the moment. Was she looking for them? Did she hate them?


	5. Chapter 5

Alison paced back and forth as she waited for the confirmation text on her burner phone. Yes, she had a burner phone. She had no damn privacy with the police around her 24/7. And yes, this was the same phone she called Noel on this very morning, except now Noel didn't seem to remember how to operate a phone. She was getting aggravated.

Caleb and Ezra were able to track the van the girls were last seen in and from there they found a lead on the Campbell farm. They were delaying telling Toby because once good cop Toby knew, Tanner would be all over this. The boys were waiting in the getaway car a few houses down with the doors unlocked. Once Noel made his presence in the house known, Alison was sure the cops would have her hide in her room, in which case, Alison would leave her room and run to the car.

Was she 100% sure this would work? No. But this was the best she could come up with at 3 am, and since Caleb and Ezra didn't seem to argue she felt particularly confident with it. As she walked past the same vase on her kitchen table for what seemed like the 180th time, she finally got a text from Noel saying "here." Her heart raced but she knew this was the only way to save them and the closer she got to finding them, the closer she got to telling Emily how she really felt. Ali looked at her reflection on the screen of her burner phone, tears welled up in her eyes quickly, right as Noel threw a rock in the window; "just on time" she thought…Here we go.


	6. Chapter 6

They just finished dinner and were sent back to their cold, fake rooms. Emily used to love spending time in her room. Her bed was extremely comfy, especially after a long day of swim practices and school. She imagined now that when she got back home, her room wouldn't feel like home anymore. As she lay in bed trying to get comfortable she thought about different interior designs for her new room. She quickly got bored and pictured the one person who would be best at making her room over: Alison. It was amazing how anything she could think of reminded Emily of her. Emily's morning biscuit even reminded her of Alison. It was warm, and soft, biscuits were the fancy, classy, and delicate form of breakfast foods. Just like a croissant. Emily imagined her Alison eating croissants while sitting at a quaint cafe right alongside the Eiffel Tower.

It was early, but since they were locked up and had nothing to do, Emily tried to go to sleep. As hard as it was, Emily didn't realize how tired she was. Guess you don't realize how tiring being tortured and held hostage can really be.

As each day went on, her hope of getting out began to grow smaller and smaller. The girls were physically unable to talk about the shock torture they endured. Emily needed to ask them why she was never shocked. Who did they all pick if they didn't pick her? Did Spencer get the brunt of it all? Why wasn't she shocked? In the midst of all her thinking she turned over to find her doorknob ever so slightly being turned. Her heart sank. Was A/Charles coming for her? What was he going to do? As the door opened Emily was shocked to find Spencer in the doorway. "Come out."

Emily jumped out of bed, no questions asked and followed her friend. She continued behind the brunette to find all her friends along with Mona/Alison standing in the hall.

"We have 3 minutes. Spencer, tell them." Mona encouraged.

"Charles gave us a lot of decorations for this prom…and it just so happens we can make a device that powers down all of the electricity here…that way we can try and escape."

Mona continued. "I have the layout of this place memorized. There's a room at the end of this corridor that I haven't been able to check out because we can't make it there and back in time. But if the powers out, we can go in." The girls looked at each other and nodded. It seemed like a legit plan. Emily trusted Spencer, she was still unsure about Mona, but what other choice did she have? Mona had been here longer and despite her poor track record, she did help the girls a lot recently. It's not like they had anything to loose.


	7. Chapter 7

"There's someone in the house!" Alison screamed. It came out a lot more nervous than she anticipated. Just like her mother's favorite wine, her lying only seemed to get better with time. Immediately the cops swarmed the kitchen surrounding Alison in a protective circle. Tanner took the lead and stepped up to the broken window, where Noel threw the rock. She picked up the rock and just as Alison had instructed it read "You can run but you can't hide".

"Get her out of here" Tanner yelled. The cops, with their guns drawn and flashlights brightly shinning, brought Alison to her room. That was of course, after they searched it top to bottom…twice. As Alison sat on her bed, a female officer stood in front of her doorway staring out the window looking for any sign of movement.

Alison hadn't thought the security would be this tight on her, so she needed a way out of her house. She wasn't worried. She had snuck out of her house plenty of times in the past, so this was nothing new. She remembered her bathroom window was only a few feet below her deck. She had easily jumped onto the railing and made it down before, she just had to get this she-cop off her back.

"Excuse me, officer? Is it alright if I go to the bathroom?" Alison asked in her most polite, innocent voice. "Uh, I guess that will be okay. I'll stand outside the door to be safe." Alison felt bad for the cop. Hopefully she didn't get in too much trouble for letting Alison out of her sight.

She entered the bathroom and immediately locked the door behind her. Alison spun around taking in her surroundings one more time. She didn't know why she was being this dramatic but if this plan failed and she ended up getting killed by A or any one of the hundred other people on her shit list, this would be the last time she was in her home. She shook her head to rid herself of these negative thoughts. None of that mattered. She needed to save her friends…and Emily.

Instinctively, she turned the sink on and ran to the window. With ease she opened it, and looked out. No one in sight. Alison chuckled to herself. Not one cop was outside looking for a suspect. Rosewood PD really needed to get their shit together. It's no surprise the crime rate is through the roof for such a small, suburban town.

She hopped out with ease and landed on her feet, just as she always did-literally and figuratively. She made a run for it straight to where she knew Caleb and Ezra would be waiting for her.

It was almost too easy for her to sneak out. Just about now she figured the she-cop would be getting antsy, knocking on the door, waiting for a response from Alison that was never going to come. Maybe the door was already knocked down.

"You ready?" Caleb asked before Alison could even sit down in the backseat of the car.

"Of course." She smiled briefly as Caleb and Ezra both eyed her down. She would never show any of the uncertainty or the nerves that she was truly feeling, because in all honesty, there was no turning back now. Each partner was filled with their own desire to save the love of their lives.


	8. Chapter 8

Emily tossed and turned in her bed. Her mind raced after talking with her friends. Could they really pull this off? She knew she would do anything she could to help. Their plan was that Emily would cause a scene during set up in the morning and fight with Spencer. As if she didn't feel worse enough about hitting Spencer's switch, now she had to act out this intense argument with her.

She looked toward her window…it's not like she had any indication of what time it was. The only thing staring right back at her from behind the curtains was a cement wall. She decided she needed rest for their big day tomorrow. The only thing that could put her to sleep was dreaming about her and Ali together. Emily would never tell anyone but she always came up with these elaborate scenarios of her and Alison together. Some were magnificent and happy, others were more realistic and sometimes horrifying. To be honest, her imagination couldn't get much worse than her reality.

Dreaming of one of them being killed? Already happened. Dreaming of one of them murdering someone? Happened. Dreaming of one of them being sent to prison? Stalked? Kidnapped? All already happened. Her mind was running out of storylines.

She decided on a happy ending. After all, Emily was big on happy endings. That's what Alison loved most about her. Her eyes closed and her mind painted bright pictures of her and Alison at the kissing rock. It was like watching a movie. One she had seen hundreds of times before, one she knew all the lines to, but for some reason, she always chose it.

Alison's fingers intertwined with Emily's as the blonde led her to their favorite, secret spot. Emily's heart raced with excitement. Butterflies filled her belly as she wondered what Alison's next move would be. Would they take it slow? Or would Alison lean in for a kiss without any hesitation?

Coming up with these scenarios reminded Emily of those choose-your-own-story books she used to read when she was younger. "Turn to page 5 if you decided to skip class. Turn to page 9 if you decided to be a good student." She loved being in control of her own destiny. Little did she know just a few years later she would have absolutely almost no control over her life.

Alison sat Emily down at the rock and stared deeply into her brown eyes. "Em, I know I haven't made it easy on you these past few years, and I don't think I can ever fix the damage I've done…but I want you to know I'll try every day if I have to to prove to you that…." Alison's voice slowly faded. "Prove what Ali?"

"Prove that I love you, Em." Alison paused for a brief moment before leaning into kiss Emily. It was slow at first, but passionate. Hands grabbing, hair being pulled, the momentum was being picked up. They couldn't seem to get enough of each other. The Emily who was sound asleep in the dollhouse was too wrapped up in her dream to realize she was actually moaning Alison's name aloud. It was quiet at first but then louder.

The red button on the cameras blinked, the same annoying blink it always did. However, the person behind it, Charles, focused in on Emily's room. Charles zoomed in to see Emily tossing in her sleeping moaning Alison's name. This A may have been a kidnapper, a killer, and sociopath, but they certainly weren't a pervert. A muted the cameras and returned to their sketching of the elaborate prom that was going to occur in just a few hours, it was just too pathetic to watch.


	9. Chapter 9

The car ride wasn't too bad, and no where near as awkward as Alison anticipated. She figured the guys hated her. Ezra's hatred was fueled from their uncomfortable past, in her defense, Ezra really needed to stop having a thing for girls under 18, and Caleb hated anything that ever upset Hanna. Caleb even went so far as to stop eating shrimp because it gave Hanna food poisoning once. Whether or not they hated her didn't truly matter to Alison. She had plenty of enemies and as long as her friends' significant others were civil to her, that was all that she cared about. There was one thing on Alison DiLaurentis's mind though, and it was saving Emily Fields.

The car pulled onto a dirt road in the middle of the woods. "Just where every happy ending takes place…the woods" Ezra sarcastically chirped from the passenger seat. Caleb turned around to look at Alison. "Ali, open that bag next to you."

"What Hanna say if she knew you got me a gift?" Alison smiled. She just couldn't help herself. But now wasn't the time for comments. "She'd probably be grateful, considering these shoes are going to help find her…" Caleb shot back. Alison enjoyed Caleb's sense of humor. She also enjoyed his take-no-shit-attitude.

"Some pair of shoes these are. If I click my heels together 3 times will we find the girls?" Alison inquired.

"There's a chip inside. It helps us pinpoint your exact location. When you go and give yourself to A…we'll only be a few seconds behind you." Caleb had no time for banter.

"Right…" Alison hated to admit it but she was nervous. All day she blocked out this part from her mind. She had no idea who A could be, and clearly they were dangerous. She sent the text to A this morning, right after she called Noel. " _I know I'm the one you want. Take me instead and let the girls go. Meet me at the Campbell farm at 9._ "

She wasn't entirely sure the girls were even still alive, but she knew that if something truly terrible had happened to them she would know. After all, she always knew when something happened and she always saved them. She met Hanna after Mona hit her with her car and she pulled Emily out of the barn. She was going to save them again, she just was.

Alison switched her shoes, fitting perfectly into her new ones. "Are you sure you want to do this?" Ezra asked.

"What other choice do we have?" Alison responded. She took a deep breath and stepped outside of the car. She nodded at the boys and shut the car door. Alison had done a lot of questionable things in her past, but this had the biggest reward. This meant the most to her.

Her new heels dug into the dirt path as she headed (North maybe?) towards the Campbell farm. It was an overcast night and she had no chance of seeing the stars. There was something about the night that used to calm Alison. The extreme silence, the stars, the moon, she used to love sitting on the beach at night with her family down in Wildwood and stare out at the dark sky. The keyword there was _used to._ Now, Alison got goosebumps when she walked alone. She heard every single noise in the woods. Every crinkle of a leaf, every tree branch swaying, each noise more frightening than the next. She had A to thank for that.

She must not have realized how short the trip was, or how distracted her brain was because when she finally arrived to the Campbell farm she was shocked. She turned around to see Ezra and Caleb hiding behind trees. She felt safer knowing they were there. Ali took her phone out and texted A. "Im here." No one made Alison DiLaurentis wait, not even A.


	10. Chapter 10

Emily looked at herself in the mirror. Given the circumstances; poor lighting, minimal make up, and a forced prom gown (which just so happened to be her style..whoever Charles was really did have good taste..or maybe years of stalking the girls helped him pick out a gown) she didn't think she looked that bad. Her mind drifted to the one person who would always tell her the truth on how she looked: Alison. Ali was always brutally honest with the girls. One time in middle school the girls went shopping to pick out an outfit for one of Noel Khan's parties, and Emily picked out a flannel shirt (no surprise there) and Alison almost crucified her. "Really Emily? Flannel? It's June! We're not going to a farm!"

Emily could practically hear Alison's voice yelling her name. She could visualize the way her name gently slid off Alison's warm, pink lips and out into the cool open air. Anytime Alison said Emily's name it always sounded just a bit different than they way she said the other girls. It always sounded honeyed, with just a twinge of desire.

For a quick moment Emily truly believed she had heard her name being called. But any questions she had about it faded when her door suddenly opened. "Please exit your rooms." Emily stood up and walked to her doorframe, meeting her friends. She wasn't a fan of school dances, but even in her worst nightmares, Emily never envisioned a prom this horrible. Her friends greeted her with the same uncertainty. They were all on edge. There was no telling how this plan was going to go. Just when they thought they were one step ahead of A they ended up really being three steps behind him.

They locked arms and somberly walked towards the decorated warehouse where their prom was going to be held. She imagined most girls probably worried about what they would be served for dinner rather than wondering if they would be killed on their prom night, but then again Emily and her friends weren't like most girls.

The playlist they examined earlier was already blasting through the speakers. Music from their middle school years flooded the room. Everyone was here, except Alison (Mona). Emily still refused to call Mona by Ali's name. Mannequins dressed in suits and gowns stood freakishly still, eerily staring back at them through masquerade masks. The girls made their way down the steps, monitoring their every move and making sure none of the mannequins blinked. Their plan wouldn't work if Mona wasn't here. What was taking her so long? As if Spencer read her mind, she answered her question with a snark comment. "Typical Ali, always waiting to make a grand entrance." Emily looked up to see Mona in a beautiful dress only Alison could pull off, standing gracefully at the top of the stairs. It was like eating your favorite name brand cereal everyday, only to wake up one morning to find the generic off-brand in your cabinet. Regardless, now that she was here, it was go time. They had one shot to get this right, or..well Emily didn't want to think about the what if.


	11. Chapter 11

"Emily?! Aria?! Hanna?! Spencer?!" Alison yelled out their names in a repeated pattern with no response. A still hadn't responded to her text. It was like the one time she wanted her creepy, sociopath stalker to answer, he just wasn't in the mood. She trailed the old farm house finding no signs of life anywhere, and she couldn't decide if that was good or bad. Caleb and Ezra walked over to converse. Clearly this plan wasn't working.

"Obviously A's not coming." Ezra said. Something about his comment made Alison want to smack him across the face. No shit Ezra. She just couldn't help herself. "Really? You think?" She sarcastically remarked, the same way she would have in middle school. Some things just never changed. Caleb was determined now more than ever to find Hanna (and the rest of the girls of course) so he walked away from the bickering to continue the search.

—-

 ** _Charles P.O.V_**

Everything was perfect. Beautiful Ali has just arrived to the prom looking as gorgeous as ever. Her radiant blonde curls swayed as she gracefully walked down the stairs with her friends. To be honest Charles (Charlotte)…actually lets get this straight, its Charlotte now, not Charles okay?

To be honest Charlotte was always jealous of the relationship Alison had with the girls. They always seemed to be extremely close, just like family and that was all Charlotte really ever wanted. Her family was…how could she put this nicely? Fucked up. There was just no other way to describe it. Charlotte spent most of her life in Radley and the minimal about of time she spent outside of it, she got to experience how great it was to have a friend (technically sister). Charlotte would watch Alison and admire how courageous and bold she was. If Charlotte was able to truly be Alison's older sister she was sure the two would have clashed from time to time, but CeCe Drake and Alison…now that was an unstoppable dynamic duo.

When Alison had "died" she was so angry with how happy and close the girls seemed to be. After hearing talking with Mona about the game, she became obsessed. It was the perfect time for her to take over and give those little bitches what they deserved. How could they be okay with Ali's death? For years Charlotte plotted and texted, and spied. But it was never enough. How far could she go? The game was a drug to her. This dollhouse she had created for the girls…this was her best work yet. It was so sinister, so incredibly messed up. She loved every minute of it. Sure Alison was alive now and kidnapping her friends was probably going to make her angry but she doubted Alison would ever know the truth.

That was until this morning, when she got a text from Alison. Leave it to Ali to go out of her way to double text her supposed deranged stalker. In all fairness, Charlotte wasn't deranged, or a sociopath. She was just too intelligent and too caring. She had been through so much and never got a fair shot at life, so excuse her for being a little " _off"._ She never let anything get too far because if she killed one of her dolls the game would be over. She always took good care of her dolls.

Charlotte felt a little off her game today though, ever since she got Alison's text basically sacrificing herself for the girls. It angered Charlotte to see how willing Ali was to give herself up for her friends who just so happened to help send her away to prison. But Charlotte didn't care, she needed to see Ali. But today of all days though, Ali? This prom was the ultimate idea. It was so cruel and so well thought out.

Truthfully, Mona wasn't cutting it as Alison anymore anyway. She wasn't as blonde, as mean, or as perfect as Ali. It was nothing against Mona, she was doing her best, but there was no one who could replace Alison. Charlotte thought about it for a while and although she didn't want to kidnap her own sister, she figured it was the best thing to do. Plus, having real Ali here with her friends might be really fun to watch. She'd love to see Emily's reaction to having the real Alison here. Charlotte always knew about Emily's crush…Emily wasn't exactly subtle about it, but she loved seeing how Alison had Emily tightly wound around her finger. Alison would say "jump" and Emily would ask "how high?" Maybe having Alison here would make Emily less pathetic. Charlotte was getting tired of muting the cameras every night while Emily moaned out Ali's name in her sleep. It was just sad. Alison would have totally blasted Emily for that if she knew. Charlotte knew Alison didn't feel the same way Emily did. She was Alison DiLaurentis after all.

The cameras beeped and flashed red. Charlotte spun around in her chair. The prom was just beginning but her motion detectors were going off. Alison was here. She zoomed the cameras in and her heart began to beat. She felt butterflies in her stomach for the first time in months. In the corner of one of the top left screens, she finally saw her. Her beautiful sister walking closer to the dollhouse she built. Charlotte needed to act quick. She ran from her seat down to the prom area. This needed to end well.


	12. Chapter 12

**_Hi yall, thanks for all the kind words with my story! Just as a fun fact for y'all I do know that some of my story is different than the actual scenes that took place during these episodes, but I wanted to make it a little different without straying too much from the plot. I intend to sort of follow the story as best as I can but also changing it and making it my own while giving you guys the perspectives of some of my favorite characters. Thanks so much for reading!_**

Now that Mona had arrived, their plan was in full swing. Hanna looked up at the cameras "This is your prom too Charles. You should really be here with us." There was no response, not even a chime from the bell. The girls looked around to see if any of the mannequins happened to be this supposed Charles, but still there was no movement.

Suddenly, a shadow emerged from the back corner of the room. Emily immediately tried to pinpoint where exactly Charles came from, because to their knowledge, there was no other way out of this room. Charles moved stealthily towards the girls. Aria had the most important job and if she messed up everything would be ruined. It's not that Emily didn't have faith in her, because truth be told, Emily believed in every single one of her friends. Alison always told Emily she was the most loyal of the girls. She didn't quite believe it, especially now since they helped send Ali to prison, but she always knew she would die for her friends. Spencer held on tightly to Aria's arm waiting to signal her when to push the flash. As Charles stood just a few feet in front of them Aria hit her queue right on time and the entire building went black. "Go! Now!" Mona yelled. The girls linked arms again and made a run for it down the hallway they grew to knew too well during their time here. They followed the path scared that Charles would follow, but they didn't hear any noise.

The girls made it to a room. Against the walls were large bookshelves with picture frames of a small blond boy. If Emily knew how to spot a DiLaurentis child she knew one of the main things to look for was outstanding blonde hair. In the picture was a young Jessica DiLaurentis as well. The girls looked around, examining their surroundings. "Is this A's lair?" Hanna asked.

"It's like A's heart…if he actually had one." Aria shot back. The lights went back on and the girls gasped as their eyes adjusted to the light. A home movie played on a screen in front of them. Mrs. DiLaurentis was hugging to young boys; presumably Charles and Jason? The trio were standing in a pumpkin patch at the Campbell farm. "Jason" Spencer choked out. It wasn't quite a question but more so one of Spencer's famous thoughts that exited her mind audibly.

Emily looked around wondering why there weren't any pictures of Alison. If Charles was her brother, and there were pictures of him and Jason together, than where were his pictures with Alison? Spencer looked up at the camera "Let us go or we torch the place." There was no hint of remorse in her voice, and absolutely no sign of her giving in. Aria looked over at her tall brunette friend and took matters into her own hands. She grabbed the movie reel and held it tightly against the light, causing it to burn. "Let us go now!" Hanna reiterated. The room started to smoke as the projector caught on fire. Mona and Emily grabbed some of Charles memorabilia and pressed it against the fiery object to create torches. Maybe this would get Charles to set them free. The alarm blared through the building but the girls ignored it and continued to burn everything in sight. They weren't going down without a fight.

—

 ** _Charlotte POV_**

"God damnit!" Charlotte yelled aloud crashing her fists on her desk. She was back watching the girls from her computer screen when she could see them burning all of her childhood memories. A single tear slid down her cheek. That was all she had left of Charles. There was no better feeling for Charlotte than when Jessica agreed that Charles was dead and the two set off to Aunt Carol's to bury him. It was so cathartic, and so liberating. Charlotte thought things were really looking up then. But would it really be Charlotte's life if things didn't come crashing down?

She scanned the screen to see Alison looking at the bushes. Thick, grey smoke was just starting to rise from the underground. Charlotte pushed the alarm button and decided her best choice was to leave. She hated having to give up and abandon everything she had created. She especially didn't want to abandon her dolls, but those bitches just always found a way to ruin everything. Why couldn't they play nicely?! She always told herself she'd never leave the dolls. She knew what it felt like to be abandoned and even though she didn't like these girls at the end of the day, they were her dolls. And what kind of game would she have if she didn't have any dolls to play with?

Charlotte quickly zipped up her black hoodie and escaped through the back exit in which she knew no one would ever find. She gave her screens one more quick look. The girls left the smokey room and started looking for an exit, all because Charlotte pushed the one button she was saving in case of something like this. It was worse than the alarms and the switches and the prom, it was her secret weapon, and she'd never give up what it was.


	13. Chapter 13

Alison saw smoke and instinctively Caleb and Ezra ran over. The smoke was coming from underground. No wonder A wasn't at the farm, he was too busy in the underground tunnel. She knew Andrew Campbell was a weird history nerd, but she didn't think he'd literally recreate something like this. After some digging they found a steaming sewer grate. "Emily? Hanna? Aria? Spencer?" She continued yelling for her friends. This was getting dangerous. Where was this smoke coming from?

"Emily?!" Her name naturally slid off her tongue. She so desperately wished she was yelling Emily's name in any other circumstance…especially one that involved a nice warm bed…or maybe a shower..anything but this. Alison jumped when she heard banging coming from behind her. Hidden behind vines and leaves, Caleb found a cellar door, the one where all the banging was coming from.

"Help us! Please help us! Let us out!" Alison could hear the fear in her friends' voices.

"Open it!"Alison screamed at Caleb. Caleb was trying his best but he couldn't quite get the lock. Ezra tried helping, when finally Alison had enough. Smoke was peaking through the door and Alison's eyes began to tear. Was A trying to burn them alive? Alison always knew that if she needed something done she could really only trust herself to do it. She pushed Ezra aside and lifted with all her might. She was making progress. One more lift and they might get the door open. Without thinking her and Caleb simultaneously lifted and the door opened. She stepped back from the force and just as her eyes opened she felt her. She felt the warm body grabbing and holding tightly around her. She knew exactly who it was hugging her this way. She knew Emily's scent no matter how long they were away for. Emily shook in the blonde's arms and Alison held Emily like she would never let her go again.

Caleb embraced Hanna in a similar fashion, as did Ezra and Aria. Spencer hugged Mona glad that the two were able to work together and create a plan that got them out of that Hell hole.

Alison pulled back to examine her beautiful mermaid. She didn't seem physically damaged. There was some ash and dirt around her face, but nothing she couldn't handle. Alison also just realized the girls were all dressed in prom gowns. She'd have to ask them about that later, much later when they felt ready to talk about what had happened. Right now she only cared about one thing "Are you okay?" Alison asked with the most sincere and concerned tone, as she wiped a tear from Emily's cheek. Emily nodded "You came for us". She wasn't asking but rather telling Alison in a way that only Ali understood meant "of course you came for us, you always do".

"I love you" Ali blurted out. Emily smiled and embraced Ali again. It made Alison so happy to have the love of her life right here, alive, in her arms. Emily could have ran to anyone, to anything, she could have ran and never looked back but the second she saw Ali's face she almost tackled her to ground. The hard part was over now. She saved her friends, and now she was going to spend the rest of her time helping them recover from this trauma, and prove to Emily she had changed and was going to do everything in her power to prove her love.

 ** _Charlotte's POV_**

Charlotte could see this pathetic reunion from where she was standing. It made her sick. Naturally Emily ran straight to Ali's arms. It made her sick. And not for anything, why did Ali look just as pathetic as Emily? Charlotte had only seen Alison look at one other person this way and it was way back when in Wildwood when Alison hooked up with board shorts. Did Ali have feelings for Emily? No way. Alison would have told her years ago. Then again, Alison did have this obsession with ruining that one girl's life. What was her name? Pigskin something or other? Paige maybe? Either way she was irrelevant, but that girl ended up dating Emily. Maybe she was onto something.

She watched for just a few more moments until she saw Rosewood's finest. Good old Toby ran over and kissed Spencer. Charlotte overheard him exclaim "It's Andrew babe! We got him!" Charlotte audibly laughed to herself. God she was good. They really had no idea. Yet again she was in the clear. She turned around and walked off to The Lost Woods. She'd stay there for now, until she came up with a new plan. It wouldn't be hard, and she knew she was more than capable of living up to the challenge.


	14. Chapter 14

Alison reluctantly let Emily go when she saw how happy Pam and Wayne were to have their little girl back. She was happy Emily had such a loving family. It wasn't like Alison could run home and hug her mother.

The next morning Alison tried her luck by going over to Emily's house. She was surprised to find Emily gone. "Good morning Alison." Pam greeted. Alison smiled, Pam was a very friendly woman, and she was grateful she finally accepted Emily for who she was. "Morning Mrs. Fields" Alison returned. "Is Emily here?"

Pam slightly shook her head. "She went out with Wayne. They're at the shooting range. It's not my first choice, but when Emily asked I just couldn't say no. Plus my husband hasn't gotten much alone time with Emily since he's been away." Pam was usually never this talkative but she appreciated the conversation. She felt welcome and like part of the family for just a moment. Alison wasn't sure how to respond next. "I'm sure she just needs time right now to process everything." Pam nodded in agreement before offering for Alison to come in for a cup of tea. Normally Alison would decline and try again later, but if Alison was going to court Emily Fields, she wanted to continue to warm up to her family. "I'd love to, thank you." Alison followed Pam into the kitchen where she sat at the counter shifting her weight to make sure she had perfect posture.

"They should be home soon." Pam said. Alison smiled kindly in response. The room was quiet for a bit while Pam poured Ali's tea into a nice ceramic mug. It wasn't an uncomfortable silence but it made Alison nervous. She was never this nervous around Pam Fields, she needed to get it together. Right before she could ask how their family was doing, Pam spoke up. "Emily told me that you were the one who saved them. You and Mr. Fitz, and Caleb."

Alison wasn't entirely sure how much Emily had told her so she answered with a simple "Yes I did." Alison couldn't tell but it appeared as though Pam was tearing up.

"Emily is so lucky to have a friend like you Alison. I know you both haven't had the easiest time with everything that's gone on…but if there's one thing I can always be sure of, it's your friendship. I couldn't imagine what Emily would do without the girls…especially you." Alison didn't know where Pam was taking this, but she beamed at the compliment and the subtle hint of her knowing just how important their friendship (soon to be relationship) was.

"I care about them a lot. I've always tried to protect them, even when they thought I was wrong, or guilty of something. All I've ever wanted was to keep them safe. I can't imagine what they went through the last two weeks…I feel so guilty. I wish I could have been down there instead of them." Alison was crying at this point. She had held in all her feelings for quite a while now. She was embarrassed that this was the time her emotions felt it was appropriate to come out. Pam's natural reaction was to hug Alison and Ali hugged back. "Alison, I've always known deep down that you are a good person. Don't feel guilty for something you couldn't control. You put yourself in a lot of danger to save your friends last night. You did something I don't think I could ever repay you for…" Pam trailed off fighting back more tears. This was really turning into something out of a Lifetime movie. Just as the two released from their embrace and wiped their tears, Emily and Wayne walked through the door. Emily looked tense, and Wayne looked like a proud father who had just taught his daughter how to use a semi-automatic.

"Hey" Emily said taken back by the fact that Alison was here having tea with her mother. And were they both crying? What did she miss? "Hey Em. I hope you don't mind, I came by to check in and your mom invited me inside." Emily was hesitant but happy to see Ali. She looked over to find Pam smiling an empathetic and almost apologetic smile.

"No of course…" Emily tried her best to smile, but Alison knew it was fake. "Do you want to come upstairs?" Alison felt guilty for ambushing Emily like this.

"I don't want to impose, we can take a raincheck if you're too tired." Ali didn't want to push too hard. After all, it hadn't even been 24 hours since she was rescued from that horrible place. "I'm fine." It was all Emily said as she walked upstairs. Alison looked towards Wayne and Mrs. Fields who both nodded encouragingly for her to follow their daughter. "Thank you for the tea" Alison said as she walked up the stairs to Emily's room.


	15. Chapter 15

She wasn't sure what to say. If she asked how she was doing, she already knew the answer, and she couldn't possibly just jump in and ask what happened in that torture shack. She knew it needed time and given that, Emily would eventually confide in her. "How was the shooting range?" She settled with.

"Good. It was nice to spend time with my dad." Emily was hanging up her coat and tidying some things up around her room. "I'm sure he loved that." Alison encouraged.

"How long were you and my mom talking for?" Emily asked. Alison wasn't sure if she had upset Emily by accepting Mrs. Fields invitation for tea. "Not too long. I'm sorry if I overstayed my welcome. I just wanted to see how you were doing." Alison wasn't confident with that statement. They don't exactly have a guidebook for how to talk to your friend after they've been tortured by a person named A. Immediately Emily responded with "I'm fine." Emily wasn't one to break down and cry. She was an extremely strong person and it took a lot for her to get to that point. "You don't have to do that with me Em." Alison wanted her friend to know it was okay to be honest. "Do what?" Emily questioned, unsure of what Alison was getting at.

"You don't have to pretend. I can't imagine what you guys went through down there…I just want you to know I'm here…if you need anything." Emily stared at Alison for a second which made Alison feel a little uneasy. She longed for the day she could just embrace Emily and kiss her without it being weird. She only had herself to blame for that. She could have had this years ago. "I never thanked you for what you did" Emily finally spoke up.

"You don't need to thank me." Alison almost chuckled. Her mermaid was so well-mannered, it was adorable. "Yes I do. You saved us Ali. You put your life at risk for us, after we sent you to prison." Alison could hear the pain and regret in Emily's voice.

"I don't blame you for what you all did." Alison moved over encouraging Emily to sit next to her on the bed. Almost instinctively, Emily read her mind and sat down next to the blonde. "I know I never did a good job of showing it, but I love you girls…so much more than you know…all I've ever wanted was to protect you guys." Alison was having a hard time getting her thoughts out in a way that made sense. This whole being honest thing was a lot harder than she anticipated. Emily placed her hand over Alison's and squeezed. "Thank you Ali. For everything." Emily said it again. She'd say it every day if she had to. "I love you Em" Alison replied. It was natural, it was truthful, but most importantly it was the most honest thing she had said in her entire life. "I love you to Ali."

In Alison's mind this scenario would have played out with a slow, passionate kiss, followed by a steamy afternoon sex endeavor in Emily's bedroom, but Emily was too vulnerable right now, plus, Mr. and Mrs. Fields were right downstairs. The two sat in silence for a while until Emily looked over at Alison. "Can I ask you a favor?" Emily inquired.

"Anything" Alison responded.

"Can you help me redecorate my room?" Alison was confused at the random question, but figured she wouldn't press her mermaid any further until she was ready to explain. "Of course Em. I'd love to."


	16. Chapter 16

Hi Guys I am changing things up a bit from the storyline in the episodes! I don't usually do this so lets see how it goes.

 **Five Years Later**

 ** _Charlotte's POV_**

It was five years later and Charlotte was living in Alison's home. The girls had all testified that it was safe for Charlotte to be freed from that horrible place she was put in…that was everyone except Aria. She had to hand it to them, they did a good job of lying-as usual. She was really genuinely surprised when only one of her dolls-sorry one of Alison's friends, verbally admitted that she was against the idea. Charlotte really had changed though. She was ready to turn a new leaf and begin a new life with her family.

She had some things she needed to take care of now that she was home. She had asked Alison if all the girls could come over and the two could cook dinner for them. No games, no tricks, and definitely no poison. Just a meal so she could formally apologize to the girls and thank them for letting her have another chance at life. She knew this time she was going to get it right.

—

"Wow it feels like yesterday I helped you redecorate this room…now we're moving everything out." Alison smiled as she spoke, picturing her and Emily painting together and accidentally kissing. She knew Emily was vulnerable then, especially after the whole dollhouse incident but it just felt right, and Emily didn't pull away.

For the last five years, Emily and Alison were always stuck between the line of friends and a little bit more than friends, just as they always were. Emily went away to school, but now she was staying back in town and finishing the last of her classes at Hollis, since the death of her father. Alison was heartbroken when Emily called her and told her the news. She was having a hard time with his passing and Alison thought it would be best for her to move into her house. That was until Charlotte was released and now the three would be roommates. Emily assured her it was okay but Ali could tell just how uncomfortable she really was.

Hanna was in the city, with Caleb, but Lucas offered Hanna an opportunity of a lifetime so her and Caleb moved back to Rosewood (technically moved into The Radley Hotel) which Hanna's mom was now in charge of. Spencer was working for her mom, Mrs. Hastings, who was soon to be Senator Hastings, while Toby was building the two of them their dream house. As for Aria her and Ezra were engaged and working for the same publisher. It was incredible how they all stayed together with their high school crushes..all of them except Emily and Alison.

"Ali, are you sure you still want me to move in? Especially now with Charlotte living there?" Emily questioned. She jumped at the chance to move in, but as most things in her life, there was a catch. Move in with the girl of your dreams? Sure, you just have to also live with her deranged sister who tortured you for most of your teenage life and almost tried to kill you multiple times.

"You know I want you there Em, I just don't want you to be uncomfortable. I know you probably don't believe me but she's changed. I swear it." Emily didn't respond to Alison's statement. How much could she have changed? Emily didn't exactly want to sleep under the same roof as A. And she really had enough things to stress about. Alison continued "I've known her for a really long time…and I know she's not exactly the girl I was good friends with and vacationed with, but I'm trying to believe she's a lot better now..she's all I have Em." Alison almost pleaded. She really wanted the best of both worlds here and she knew it was unfair to ask but if she could have the love of her life and her sister under her roof, her life would finally be perfect.

Emily was stuck. Her house was finally sold so she needed to get out anyway, Pam was going on a trip because she needed to clear her head, and even though Ms. Marin offered to give Emily a room at the Radley she didn't know how long she could stay there without feeling like she was taking advantage. Ali really was her only option. "I know…I may not be entirely sure that she's changed, but I think staying with you would be a good idea…" Emily trailed off. She was even having a hard time convincing herself. Alison was going to press her again, but she didn't want to push it. "Look, I'll make sure nothing happens. The second I think she's a danger to anyone, even herself, I'll call Welby and have her sent back."

Emily wasn't too sure Alison would be so willing to send her sister back to that place if need be. She begged for the girls to come back to Rosewood and testify that they felt safe, even if it meant lying. The two finished packing up their boxes and put them in the car. The only thing going through Emily's mind was a phrase her father told her when she was younger, "keep your friends close and your enemies closer." Charlotte being locked away in Welby felt close enough for Emily, but this was really taking that saying to the extreme. She figured she got through A's torture twice in her life, she could do it again if she had to.


	17. Chapter 17

**_Charlotte's POV_**

Charlotte stood in the doorway waiting for the two girls to pull in. She had already made the bed in Alison's second guest room and emptied the closet for her. If she wanted to prove to everyone she had changed, she knew the best way to do it was through kind actions. Despite the craziness of Emily moving in she was going to plan a great dinner for tonight. Her and Ali had been up since sunrise and already went to the store this morning to pick out all the necessary items.

She was finally happy. She was scared to be hopeful, because anytime she had ever been hopeful before things always came crashing down. Charlotte felt so lucky to have Ali. She was the one person she loved more than anything in the entire world. Even when she went as "CeCe Drake" she was so happy to be close to Alison. Ali had treated CeCe like an older sister. She went to her for advice, and help, and they told each other everything. Ali even told CeCe when she thought she was pregnant. If they could all just forget about the horribleness of those years she posed as A, they'd all realize Charlotte was a good person who just got dealt a bad deck of cards.

"This is the last of the bags" Alison said as she handed Emily a patterned duffle bag. It wasn't much stuff considering Pam had but most of it in a storage facility right outside of Rosewood, but she had all the necessary things she needed. "Thank you again Ali" Emily said shyly. Alison smiled in return. "I'm going to help Charlotte with dinner. Make yourself at home." It was a little tense but Emily figured it would go away in time. Everyone was on edge, including the girls who were continuously textbombing her in their group chat about tonight's dinner…or as Hanna was calling it "The Last Supper".

 **Texts**

 _Hanna: What are we supposed to wear to this Last Supper anyway?_

 _Aria: Maybe I'll dye my hair pink again and pretend to be one of her dolls…for old time sake_

 _Spencer: I googled "proper attire for dinner with your ex-stalker and best friend's sociopath sister" but nothing came up._

 _Hanna: I swear if there are name cards at this dinner and mine says "Hefty Hanna" I'm going to punch that bitch_

 _Aria: I don't exactly trust anything coming of Chef CeCe's kitchen_

 _Spencer: ***Chef Charlotte***_

 _Hanna: Now I know why they call it Hell's Kitchen._

 _Emily: Ali is helping with dinner so I think we're okay._

 _Hanna: Okay as in?_

 _Emily: Okay as in not being poisoned._

 _Spencer: That's not going to stop me from keeping Poison Control on speed-dial all night Em._

Emily shut her phone off. She couldn't deal with being in the middle of this. She decided to shower and get ready for tonight. (Of course, she checked the bathroom before she went in).


	18. Chapter 18

It was just before 8 when the doorbell rang. Naturally the girls all showed up together- following one of their favorite mottos: strength in numbers. Charlotte wore a simple blue top that matched her eyes, with white jeans. Spencer made sure to make a mental note of what she was wearing incase she needed to give the police a description. _Although, she's probably ditched the clothes and is wearing a black hoodie and matching gloves by now_ , Spencer thought to herself.

"It's so good to see you guys. Thank you all for coming." Alison greeted her friends nervously. Charlotte stayed back, making sure to keep her distance and not startle the girls. Should she say hello? She never had an issue making friends, but this was the hardest thing she ever had to do. The girls stared right through Charlotte as Alison watched them. "Charlotte helped me cook dinner tonight…" Alison said as if she was talking to a seven year old. The girls continued to look at each other.

Charlotte wanted to scream out "Okay so I know I kidnapped and tortured you but I'm better!" She finally cleared her throat and spoke up. "Thank you guys for coming. I know this is probably uncomfortable for you all, and you have every right to hate me…" Alison looked over at her sister who had the floor "but I just wanted to have you all here to say thank you for giving me a second chance…but more importantly I wanted to say I'm sorry…for everything."

Eyes wandered around the room, and no one dared to speak first. Alison glared at her friends forcing one of them to speak. Spencer finally stepped up. "I think it's going to take a long time for us to forgive you Charlotte."

"I know, and I'm going to work everyday to prove to you guys I'm a different person. I promise." Charlotte almost had tears in her eyes. By the looks of it she seemed very sincere but the girls were hesitant to believe her.

"Well…dinner is almost ready. I'm going to go check on it." Alison had enough of this and needed some air…this was going to be a long night. Charlotte decided to follow her. "I'll help you." She smiled at the girls and walked out not daring to be alone with them. The girls held their breath as Charlotte exited the room and almost simultaneously exhaled when she was finally gone.

"Okay that girl deserves an Oscar" Hanna said. "Did anyone really believe that performance?" She questioned. They all shook their head except Emily. She hated what Charlotte did as much as they did and was nervous living under the same roof as her, but she wanted to believe her. She needed to believe her to make things better. "I don't know what to think anymore" Aria said.

Emily finally spoke up. "I think we should believe her." The girls all turned to their friend and stared at her in shock. "I'm sorry what?" Spencer asked.

"Em you haven't even lived here for 24 hours and you're already team Charlotte?" Aria questioned just as angry as her Spencer.

"No, but I think we should see how dinner goes and if it goes well maybe we should consider the fact that she's changed." Emily was trying to sound reasonable but she knew her friends would disagree.

"Yeah well I'll believe it when I see it" Hanna said just ending the conversation before Alison walked into the room again. "Dinner's ready." The girls all looked at each other one last time before taking their seats. "Great" Spencer mumbled under her breath.


	19. Chapter 19

Dinner was just as uncomfortable as their greeting before. No one knew what to say. Hanna downed 3 glasses of wine before Alison finally spoke up. "Dinner was great Charlotte. Thank you for getting us all together."

"It's not the first time" Hanna mouthed off a bit too tipsy. The girls shifted in their chairs uncomfortably. Charlotte kept her head down not daring to look Alison in the eye. She could feel the storm brewing in Alison.

"What was that Hanna?" Alison tried to give her friend one more chance before she ripped her a new one.

"I said it's not the first time she's gotten us all together. This time she just didn't blackmail us." Hanna repeated, slurring the last few words.

"The night's still young" Aria joked.

"Look…I understand you all have a problem with Charlotte. I get it. But don't sit at this table and act like you're all perfect, because I know damn well you all have done things you'd rather forget." The girls sat stunned from their friend's words. Alison may have been years out of high school, but she never seemed to change. Her inner mean girl always came out when she needed her to. She took a deep breath and began again. "Myself included…it took a long time for you guys to trust me again when I came back home, but you did. I know you all have it in you to do it again. Would any you want to be judged off of the person you were years ago?" Alison ended on a rhetorical question. Spender glared at her friend's almost lawyer-like tone. She had to hand it to the blonde, she had a way with convincing people to do things. Years ago they didn't recognize it, they fell innocent to her traps. But now, with much experience under their belts, they were able to spot when Alison was turning into the manipulative girl she once was.

"You're right." Of course Emily sided with Alison.

"Emily…" Hanna started but stopped when Alison cut her off.

"I'd watch what you're about to say Hanna…you've had quite a lot to drink." Alison spit her words out hotly. Charlotte continued to ignore the hateful comments spinning around because of her. Hanna stared back into her friends eyes. The old Hanna would have cowered but not this Hanna. "It's amazing Ali. How caring you've been for Emily. Opening your home to her…you have her so tightly wrapped around your finger-.." Hanna was cut off.

"Hanna! Don't!" Spencer yelled out trying to stop her friend from digging herself an already dug grave. "What are you saying?" Alison questioned. Charlotte couldn't help but stare at Emily, who was in a full rage. She felt guilty that they were all taking out their pent up aggression on each other.

"Really Hanna? You're gonna go there? I've stuck up for all of you, when things got tough, when you were accused of doing things you didn't do. I've always been the one to stay by your sides, because you're my friends and I believe in you, and I've always thought we were in this together. Charlotte did horrible things to us, but you know what? Ali's right. If we don't leave our past in the past, it will destroy our future. So can we at least try to make the rest of this night bearable?" Emily was taking deep breaths through her nose by the end of her monologue. The girls agreed and Charlotte sat across the table and smiled at Emily to thank her for stepping in and sticking up for her. _Maybe these girls aren't as bad as I thought,_ Charlotte whispered to herself.


	20. Chapter 20

The girls had just left and Emily helped Alison and Charlotte clear the table. The rest of the dinner went…better? Would that be the best word to use? No one else made anymore snarky comments and once the girls left the house, they texted in their group chat again.

 _Hanna: Well that was uncomfortable._

 _Aria: I don't feel poisoned…yet._

 _Spencer: link:httml:_

 _technically you wouldn't feel it yet._

 _Aria: Thanks Spence._

 _Hanna: Sorry about tonight Em, I just hated being in a room with that bitch._

 _Aria: Yeah, I think we were all on edge._

 _Spencer: I'm surprised she didn't have us stick around for another tea party._

Emily put her phone on do not disturb as she grabbed a few more plates and left them in the kitchen with Alison. She walked back out to go into her room when Charlotte stopped her.

"Hey Emily." Charlotte called her over nervously. Emily stopped in her tracks and looked over at the older girl. "Hi" she responded.

"I just wanted to say thanks, for sticking up for me tonight with your friends. I know this dinner was probably a bad idea, but I just needed a way to get you all together to say I'm sorry." Charlotte paused waiting for Emily to answer. "You don't have to thank me. Just prove to us you're different." That was all Emily wanted to say to Charlotte. She hated having to turn against her friends, especially for someone she knew they couldn't trust, but she gave Charlotte one last chance. If Charlotte was dumb enough to screw this up Emily knew she was the first person who was going to find her and raise Hell. Charlotte spoke quietly as Emily walked out of the room "I will".

Alison finished up in the kitchen and found Charlotte sitting on the couch reading. Ever since she was in Radley Charlotte loved to read. She was always ahead of her time, reading books the kids her age couldn't even pronounce the titles of. "I'm sorry tonight didn't go exactly as planned…I'm sorry for Hanna too" Alison felt the need to apologize for her friends' behavior. Once they got riled up there was no stopping them. "Don't apologize Ali, they have every right to feel that way. I don't blame them. I'd hate me too" There was much sadness to Charlotte's voice. It was a vulnerability, perhaps a disguise to fool Alison into feeling sorry for her. "Well until they come around, you know I love you Charlotte. You'll always be my sister." Alison embraced her into a tight hug. Charlotte pulled away and smiled at Alison. "She's a good one in there" Charlotte eluded to Emily who was getting ready for bed in the next room. "Who? Emily?" Alison blushed, pretending not to know who she was talking about.

"Come on Ali, I've known you for a long time…we're family. You don't have to pretend with me" Charlotte was now the one giving advice.

"I don't follow" Alison continued to deny anything having to do with the brunette sleeping a few yards away. "You can pretend all you want, but I know you've had a thing for her…I mean it's obvious she still likes you." Charlotte chuckled. "I don't think she'd be my number one fan if you weren't my sister."

Alison smiled thinking about how Emily stuck up for Charlotte against all their friends. "Maybe not…but…I don't know…I guess we've never got the timing right." Alison admitted. It was weird talking to Charlotte about this. Was there a protocol for talking to your ex-best friend, now sister, who just got out of a psychiatric hospital, about relationships? Probably not.

"You always favored Emily over the other girls. I never knew why but I started to figure it out when you and Pigskin had that fight." Charlotte laughed at the memory of the two sitting in Charlotte's blue Buggy in the center of town waiting for Paige to deliver her love note to Emily. "I still can't believe those two dated" Charlotte almost sounded disgusted.

Alison bit her tongue. If Emily could be nice tonight under the circumstances, Alison could at least return the favor. "Paige helped Emily a lot when I couldn't. Even if I didn't like her, she was good to Emily." It took everything in Alison to say it, but it surprisingly felt good to say nice things about Paige.

"I guess…" Charlotte trailed off. "I mean she did try to drown her…" The two laughed. "You were mean Ali, but you never drowned the people you liked." The girls continued to laugh late into the night. Alison finally found a piece of her that was missing. It felt like a piece of her was finally growing back. She liked this. The casualness, the comforting feeling of having her best friend back. It all felt right.


	21. Chapter 21

_8:07 am Group Text: Being poisoned isn't the only thing you have to worry about bitches! I'm back! -A_

 _Aria: She just can't help herself can she?!_

 _Hanna: This has to be a joke._

 _Spencer: I'm walking over to their house now. Who's with me?_

 _Aria: Spence, how many cups of coffee have you had already?_

 _Spencer: 3. Are you coming?_

 _—_ _-_

There was a knock on the door. Alison's room was the closet to the front door. She got up and put her robe on. She was surprised to see Spencer here so early. "Where is she?!" Spencer shouted. "Good morning to you too" Alison retorted.

"Where is she Alison?" Spencer asked again. Aria stood next to her with her arms crossed. Alison was confused. "Where's who?" She asked. Charlotte walked out into the living room to see the two girls standing in the doorway. "Her" Spencer pushed through Alison and walked over to Charlotte who was just waking up. "Really Charlotte?! Or should I say A? I knew your speech last night was crap. Everything that comes out of your mouth is a lie!" Spencer was furious. Charlotte stood, stunned at the tall girl's accusation. "I don't know what you're talking about." Charlotte was genuinely confused. What had happened in the last 12 hours that could have caused her to freak out this badly? "Oh, you don't know? Drop the act Charlotte! This text." Spencer handed Alison her phone. "Being poisoned isn't the only thing you have to worry about bitches. I'm back" Alison read the text aloud. Charlotte shook her head. Emily came out of her room to see what all the commotion was.

"I know how bad this looks, but I promise, I didn't do this. You have to believe me" Charlotte was begging.

"We don't have to do anything" Aria spoke up this time. Charlotte looked hurt.

"Did you guys really think I would poison you?" Charlotte was offended.

"Charlotte didn't do this" Alison stood her ground. She didn't know who the girls thought they were barging into her house accusing her sister of things. "Prove it. Prove to us you didn't send this message!" Spencer was trying to be reasonable.

"I don't have a phone. You can check my room." Charlotte would offer anything to prove her loyalty. As Spencer walked towards Charlotte's room to take her up on that, Charlotte yelled out. "Wait!" The girls turned around to look at her. They knew she was lying!

"I can try to track the message. Maybe see where it came from." This plan was a lot better than looking for a phone that wasn't going to show up in her room. She looked over to her sister. "Can I borrow your laptop Ali?" Alison walked into her room to grab the electronic and help show the girls that her sister was innocent just as she said she was.


	22. Chapter 22

"Alison's laptop doesn't exactly have the same military grade spyware you had Charlotte" Spencer mentioned. Charlotte chuckled to herself. "Technically what I had was better than the military." The girls looked at each other nervously. Charlotte typed away furiously, keeping Spencer's phone plugged into the computer. The screen went black as Charlotte worked to find the IP address and the location of the person sending this message. "What are you doing?" Aria asked. Charlotte was going so fast they couldn't keep track of what she was doing. "I'm trying to see where this text came from but I can't."

"What do you mean you can't? You never seemed to have a problem with any of this before!" Spencer accused the blonde of suddenly forgetting how to do anything. "I know you don't believe me, but look. I can't get in." The girls looked over at the screen to see a bunch of white numbers flying across quickly. Suddenly, the screen went black. Charlotte looked confused and tapped at the keys forcefully. "No…no….what? No!" She shook the device continuing to hit buttons. "What's happening?" Emily and Alison asked simultaneously.

"The computer crashed. I don't know why…or how…but it did." Charlotte was concerned and Alison stared at her fried computer. "How convenient" Spencer mumbled. Charlotte shot her a look. She was starting to lose her patience with this crew. Alison caught on and decided to step in. "Stand down Spencer. She's trying to help us."

"Fine." She ended it there. She found no need to keep going, especially after the scene they made at dinner last night. "If you get any other messages or anything, show me. I can try to help." Charlotte offered. The girls nodded their heads before getting up to leave. "Sorry we barged in." Aria apologized for her and her sometimes too-wired friend. Emily smiled at the girls and walked them out, while Alison and Charlotte looked at the blank computer sitting in front of them. "Sorry about your computer Ali" Charlotte seemed genuinely upset.

"Don't apologize. You were just trying to help." She smiled at her older sister and closed the laptop. "Why don't I make breakfast?" Charlotte perked up at the idea of getting a nice meal in with her sister. Just as Alison finished her question, Emily walked in. "Let me make breakfast for you guys. As a thank you for letting me stay here with you." Emily took charge and decided to keep things civil this morning. Alison smiled at the tall brunette, "Thanks Em". Emily smiled back at her as she exited the living room.

—

Charlotte could hear breakfast being made. The sound of the pans touching the stove, dishes leaving their warm homes in the cabinets and being placed on the dinning room table. The refrigerator door being opened and closed. There was a hint of citrus in the air, possibly fresh squeezed orange juice in the works. Charlotte's doctors taught her a long time ago to take the time to use each of her senses to help her when she was feeling anxious. Name things she smelled, heard, saw, touched, and sometimes tasted. At first, she found this to be another stupid tactic her doctors taught children to help them waste time. Time seemed to barely move when in Radley. As her mind wandered, Emily walked into the living room. "Charlotte I wasn't sure how you liked your eggs…" Charlotte could sense the girl's hesitation. She didn't quite ask a question but she was leading into it. Charlotte gave her best smile. "Scrambled is fine. Thank you." Emily nodded and looked over at Alison, looking more towards her forehead, as to avoid direct eye contact. "And sunny side up for you Ali?" If she was being honest with herself, she already knew that's what Ali wanted. Ali loved sunny side up eggs, with a side of whole wheat toast, and just a smidgen of butter, she also loved a warm cup of Chamomile tea with a drop of creamer and one packet of sugar.

Okay…maybe she knew a little too much, but she still asked anyway. "Yep, you know me too well Em" Alison chuckled at how much Emily knew about her. She watched the girl walk out and thought about what she would make Emily for breakfast the next morning to return the favor. She was so distracted she didn't hear Charlotte's first comment. "What?" Alison questioned.

"I said, 'it's super cute she knows your breakfast order.'" Alison shook her head denying anything romantic. "She just has a good memory that's all."

"Oh please…'You know me too well Em'" Charlotte mimicked. Alison rolled her eyes at the blonde ignoring her comment. "Alison DiLaurentis are you blushing?" Charlotte was enjoying the back and forth. "I am not blushing. I need to freshen up before breakfast." On that note, she got up and left Charlotte to sit on the couch chuckling. "Don't look too nice, it's just breakfast." She called out. Alison continued walking down the hall, turning ever so slightly to get a glance at her mermaid cracking an egg perfectly into a sizzling pan.


	23. Chapter 23

After breakfast Alison dropped Charlotte off at therapy and came back home to find Emily in front of a stack of paperwork. "What's this?" She asked. Emily carefully pushed the papers together in a weak effort to clean up and hide them from the blonde. "Oh uh, it's nothing." She quickly stood up and grabbed the papers. Alison stopped her from walking away and in return Emily spilled the papers onto the hardwood floor. Alison went to bend over and help her friend when she saw how scared Emily looked. She paused before leaning over. "Talk to me Em" she said. Emily stared at the girl for a few seconds debating internally whether or not she should come clean with her secret. She weighed the options in her head previously when she had made the decision to do this, but now she figured if the roles were reversed, she would want to know, and at least be there to support any of her friends if they were going through this. "I'm selling my eggs." Alison's eyes widened.

"You're doing what?" She questioned. She couldn't believe what she was hearing. She had so many questions to ask the brunette. Why? How? When? "I'm selling my eyes, so another family can have them." Emily seemed confident with her answer. Alison figured she had decided this a while ago. "Why didn't you tell me?" Alison asked, almost hurt.

"I didn't tell anyone. It's not that big of a deal." Emily said nonchalantly. Alison shook her head, visibly disagreeing. "When is this happening?" Alison couldn't decide which question to ask next. "Friday." Emily was hesitant to tell her that part. She knew Alison would want to come and Emily wasn't quite sure she wanted anyone to come. "That's so soon…" Alison thought aloud, followed by "I'll be there." just as Emily had figured.

"You don't have to. I'll be fine."

"What time is the appointment? Let me take you there at least." Alison already had a plan brewing in her mind. She would tell Emily she was just dropping her off, but once Emily was safe and in surgery she would wait in the waiting room and be the first person her mermaid saw when she opened her eyes. She was already typing an email out to take a personal day at work. Surely, Rosewood high would function one day without her. "It's at 9. It shouldn't take long." Emily smiled gratefully. She was truly happy she would have someone there for her who knew what was going on. It wasn't an easy choice, but she needed the money, and she would be helping families who were unable to conceive. It was a win-win…sort of.

"Are you sure about this Em?" Alison hated to ask and make the girl second guess her decision but she needed to know that Emily was absolutely 100% sure of this. It's not like she could exactly go back on her choice. "Yeah…I think so." It was the best answer Emily could come up with at the time. It was honest too. Alison smiled at her mermaid "then I'll be there." There was a moment of silence before Alison spoke up again.

"I have another hour until I have to pick up Charlotte from therapy. Want to do something?" Alison offered. Maybe she could help Emily get her mind off of this decision for a while. "Sure…what do you want to do?" Emily couldn't help but wonder if Alison was offering just because she felt like she had to now that Emily and her were roommates.

She was never quite sure with Alison. Emily was certain of her own feelings. She had known for years just how strongly she felt for the blonde, she always tried to suppress them, but they always resurfaced. She had other girlfriends, there was Maya, Paige, and a few others here and there, but no one came close to the way Alison made her feel. Alison was different. Every time she looked at Emily her heart skipped a beat, it created a special pulse that raced faster and faster just for Ali. She could feel the heat from her blood rise to her checks, creating that cute pink blush that Alison always loved. She felt happy, so genuinely happy whenever she was around her. Her perfect blonde curls, her crystal blue oceanic eyes, the subtle hint of vanilla. She was so lost in her train of thought that she didn't hear Alison's first offer to watch a movie. "We can finish it when I get back…if you don't mind?" she suggested.

"Yeah…that's fine." Emily would do just about anything with the girl. She just loved spending time with her, especially without the other girls around. Don't get her wrong, she adored her friends and would do anything for them, but being alone with Ali was special. She could make her feel like she was the most incredible person in the world. Alison could build a person up in seconds, but with that came a power ten times worse. She could also tear that same person down. So deep down that you don't ever feel like coming back up. Emily still could feel the shattering of her heart when Alison had done that. There were a few times she could vaguely remember. Once in the locker room when Ali had told her their kisses were just for practice. Or when Ali had just come back from hiding and they had a sleepover. It was the first night they ever did just more than kiss. Emily thought it could finally be their fresh start and they could have the relationship she always dreamed of, but Ali being Ali, the next day conned the girls into believing Mona was a bad person. Emily had hoped she had changed, but now she wasn't sure.

Now being home and in Alison's presence she wasn't sure what would happen. But she sat next to her as Alison picked a movie for the two to watch. She looked away as Ali bent over to place the disk in the dvd player, not daring to look at the girls incredible, in-shape butt.


	24. Chapter 24

Hi guys, reminder that I'm changing things up from how the show was, so not all things will be the same! Thank you!

The four girls sat together in the Radley's new bar. As weird as it was being here, they couldn't help but agree with how much the place changed. They ordered drinks to start the evening off.

"So Em, how's it been living at Ali's?" Aria asked, genuinely curious. Alison opted out on this girls' night, not wanting to leave Charlotte alone and unattended, plus there was no way she was bringing her back to the place she spent far too many years at. Emily offered to stay home with them but Alison encouraged her to go out. "It'll be fun, you should go." She had said. Emily felt a little guilty, but decided to go anyway. She hadn't had alone time with the girls in a while. She started to feel like maybe they were distancing themselves from her now too, due to her association with Ali.

"It's been good actually." Emily left it at that. She didn't need to get into any more detail than that. The air seemed a bit tense ever since their uncomfortable dinner with Charlotte. "Em, can I just say something without you getting upset?" Spencer questioned hesitantly.

"Depends…" Emily said as she took a sip of her drink, "What are you going to say?" Spencer looked at the other girls before speaking. It felt as though she was the ring leader of an intervention that was just seconds from happening. "We just want you to be careful, being with Alison. I know you care about her so it may cloud your judge-.." Spencer was cut off by an angry Emily.

"We, as in you guys? You all feel this way?" Emily shouted a little too loudly at the table. A few neighboring diners looked over at their table. "Em we love you and we don't want to see you get hurt again." Hanna chimed in. If anyone could try to calm Emily it was Hanna. The two were the closest and Hanna had been her confidant in the early stages of Emily coming out. "What are you saying?" Emily asked, still confused with where this was going.

"Do you still have feelings for her?" Hanna blurted out. Aria's shocked expression said it all. They were all thinking it, and to be far Emily had been wondering where things would go now that her and Ali were roommates too, but her honest answer was that she just wasn't sure. She wasn't sure if that's what Ali would want. To be fair, if Ali got down on one knee right now and proposed Emily was sure she'd say yes, but she also knew there were many conversations to be had with Alison. Conversations that brought up their rocky past, their unclear future, and all the feelings in between. Emily finally answered her friends "I don't know." She told them. She didn't feel like having this talk right now. Not inside what used to be a messed up sanitarium. The girls got the hint and didn't press anymore. Aria cleared the air by ending the note with a sincere "We love you Em, we're just looking out for you." Emily nodded and thanked her friends for looking out for her, but she knew she needed to really talk to Alison about all of this.

—

Emily walked in around 11:45. She cut the night short by telling the girls she had a doctor's appointment in the morning. It was true that she had an appointment, but it was for her egg donation and she just didn't want to explain that, with her friends already on her back about Alison.

When Emily pulled up to the house she saw Charlotte's light on in her room and figured she was probably up reading again. There was a flickering light in the living room which she imagined was Alison watching some late night television that was on. She figured around this time of the night Ali was either watching some old black and white film, or anything on the Home and Garden channel. Alison would spend hours watching House Hunters International waiting for the episode when a couple moves to Paris. She loved to see the beautiful French landscape and pretended she was the one looking for a house there. She dreamed of the day she could finally move to Paris with the love of her life.

The TV was on low, and Emily quietly walked in. She found Ali asleep on the couch, and just as she had guessed, she was watching an episode of House Hunters where the couple was moving to Amsterdam. That's probably why she fell asleep, Emily thought to herself. Ali always changed the channel or fell asleep if they weren't in Paris.

Emily tip toed over to the girl and stared at her in awe. God Alison was so beautiful. Emily carefully placed the blanket over Alison's sleeping body. Her chest slightly rising and dropping with every breath. For a minute, Emily wonders if Alison is going to wake up. Her eyes flutter, but remain shut. Emily sits on the love seat next to the couch not quite ready to go to bed yet. She watches as the couple she is unfamiliar with pick house number 2, the one they both decide to compromise on. She watches Alison sleep more than she watches the television in front of her until she wakes up and looks over at the brunette staring at her. "Hey Em" she whispers, sleep fresh on her breath.


	25. Chapter 25

"Did I wake you?" Emily asked, nervous that she had placed the remote down too loudly.

"No, when did you get back?" Alison looked at the blanket wrapped around her and smiled at Emily, knowing the brunette was the one responsible for keeping her warm. "Just a few minutes ago." Emily answered.

"How was it?" Alison was sitting up now, wiping her eyes to wake herself up. She must have drifted off about twenty minutes ago. She fell asleep at the start of the episode when she realized the couple wasn't moving to Paris like she had hoped. "It was fine." Emily responded.

"Just fine?" Alison inquired. Emily nodded her head.

"Yeah." It seemed Emily wasn't up for much of a talk tonight. She wondered what had happened during the girl's happy hour that clearly upset Emily. Alison was always able to tell when one of her friends wasn't being themselves. She was especially able to tell when Emily was upset. "Did something happen?" Alison wasn't exactly sure she should pry any further, especially since she declined the offer to go to girls' night. She knew she was only invited to avoid awkward confrontation with Emily. The two were a package deal now that they lived together. It was a lot easier for the four girls to hang without Ali when Emily didn't room with her.

"Uh, not really." Alison was getting a little aggravated with Emily's vague answers, but if she didn't feel like talking about it then she figured she was done asking. "Well it's getting late, I think I'm going to get some rest." Alison hoped that by trying to end the conversation Emily would encourage her to stay and open up about her feelings, but as soon as she said it, she realized Emily would probably let Alison get some sleep and discuss what was bugging her in the morning. She decided to add one more time "Unless you want to talk?"

"Talk about what?" Emily asked. She wasn't quite sure where Alison was going with this but if she knew Alison like she thought she did, she knew Alison knew Emily wasn't being her typical self and that something was upsetting her. "I don't know, you don't seem like you." Alison kindly put it. Just like Emily thought.

"It's just stuff the girls said tonight."

"Let me guess, they still believe Charlotte is a bad person, that she's corrupted me now, and the two of us are going to kill you in your sleep?" Alison asked sarcastically. The two chuckled. "Not exactly."

"Was I close?" Alison asked, this time more serious.

"Sort of…" Emily wasn't sure how to put this. "They just want me to be careful, with my feelings…for you." Alison cocked her head sideways, confused at Emily's choice of words. _My feelings for you._ So she did still have feelings for her? "I thought you didn't feel that way anymore." Alison said lightly.

"I don't know what I feel Ali." Emily was so confused she didn't know where to start. Just as Alison opened her mouth Charlotte entered the room, with tears in her eyes. Ali jumped up. "I'm sorry to interrupt." Ali looked over at Emily apologetically.

"What's wrong?" Charlotte was shaking and continued looking around the house as if she lost something and was trying to find it. "My room…there's a note" Charlotte sounded incredibly vulnerable. Emily and Ali looked at each other almost forgetting they were in the middle of an important conversation. Emily stood up and walked over to Charlotte's room, keeping the two blondes behind her. She walked in to see nothing out of the ordinary. Her bed was made, a light was on, and there was some folded laundry waiting to be put away on her chair. Emily looked confused. Charlotte stepped over to show her. "Look" she picked up a piece of paper that looked just like a bookmark. She handed it over to Emily who read it out loud. "Unfortunately, two can't play at this game Charlotte. I'm the head bitch now- A."


	26. Chapter 26

**Not my best and if it were an episode, it would definitely be a filler episode, but I'm experiencing a bit of writer's block and I need to still line some things up. Hopefully next one will be better! Thanks for sticking around. Best wishes.**

The girls didn't get much sleep. After Charlotte received that eerie message, Emily and Alison alerted the girls. Spencer put in her best effort to convince the girls Charlotte sent herself the message to make herself look innocent, but Emily and Ali both felt she was genuinely scared. Although, that's exactly the way she'd want to be perceived, Spencer yelled to them. They ended the conversation agreeing to disagree, for now, and considering no one else received an A message, they would reconvene the next day and discuss.

Emily woke first. She stretched and looked out the window in her room, facing Alison's driveway. It was a cool morning. She loved waking early to see the beginning of a day. She had so much she could accomplish now that she was up. She decided to get dressed and go for a jog. She knew her and Ali needed to finish their talk from last night. She wondered what Alison was going to say before they were interrupted by Charlotte. She put on running leggings and a tank top. As she was lacing her shoes she realized in just two days she would be giving away her eggs. She had an appointment later this morning around 9. It was just before 7 now. She grabbed her iPod and headed for the road. She'd take a simple 3 mile jog around the DiLaurentis neighborhood, past Spencer's house and maybe towards the town center and back around. She opened the door to feel a cool fall breeze. She loved this time of year. School had just started a few weeks ago, and this time of the year meant a holiday every month. Halloween, Thanksgiving, and her personal favorite; Christmas.

She was sad to think her dad wouldn't be with her for their favorite holiday but she pushed that thought away and took off. There was nothing like a good run to clear her mind.

—

About a half hour later Emily jogged back into the driveway to find the door cracked open. It was peculiar because Emily knew she had made sure to close it when she left. She looked around to see if Ali or Charlotte had possibly stepped outside and forgot to shut the door, but no one was around. She carefully walked into the house, taking her earbuds out to listen for any noise. Was someone in the house?

She slowly opened the door further and peeked her head inside. Everything seemed to be normal. It was quiet in the house. Emily shut the door cautiously still keeping her guard up. As soon as she was sure everything was safe she jumped up and let out a loud gasp. "OH MY GOD!" she yelled way too loudly. Alison came peering out of her room. "Em! What's wrong?" She looked to where Emily's gaze was held. Placed on Ali's mantle right above the fire place, was a picture frame with a picture of Ali and Emily. Written on the wooden frame was a note, "Did you think I'd leave you two out?- A" The two looked at each other terrified. "The door was open when I came back from my run. Where's Charlotte?" Emily asked. No sooner did she finish that sentence she found Charlotte standing in the hall looking over at the note. "Right here" She said matter-of-factly. "When did you find that?" She asked.

"Just now. It wasn't here when I went for my run about a half hour ago. When I got back the door was cracked. Someone must have came in and put it there." Emily said quickly trying to process what just happened and place the facts together. "Who? Who would take over?" Alison asked speaking directly to Charlotte without taking her eyes off of the frame. And where did A get that picture of her and Emily. It was of the two of them way back from the summer Ali went missing. "Did you hear anything? Or see anyone near the house?" Emily asked the two girls.

"No, did you?" Ali asked Emily. She hoped maybe Emily ran past someone or a car on the way back to the house. "Nothing." Emily said, frustrated that out of the three girls no one saw anything. After the shock wore off, the girls went about their day as they usually would. Emily showered off from her run, and got ready for her doctor's appointment. Alison got dressed and had a cup of tea before heading to Rosewood High to teach the youth of today, and Charlotte stayed home, as usual, by the rules of her release.

It was always the same. The girls were used to this. Get a message, go on about your day until you get the next one. That was unless A was blackmailing you into doing something before the next message.

Emily finished brushing her hair and walked into the living room. Charlotte was watching tv. "Uh, I'm leaving, but I should be back in like an hour." Emily told Charlotte. She didn't think she owed Charlotte an explanation, but since they were roommates now, she felt it would be polite to at least let her know she was leaving and would be back soon. "Okay, thanks" Charlotte replied. She was grateful Emily was starting to open up to her, even if it was simple meaningless conversation. "If you need anything, uh you can call me." Emily added. Charlotte smiled at the kind offer. "Thank you, truly."


	27. Chapter 27

**Don't be alarmed and do not hate me for bringing a certain someone into this fan fic! I promise it'll be okay and y'all have nothing to worry about. Emison is and always will be end game :) Reminder things are a little different from the episodes!**

It just finished raining. Emily could tell by the damp ground, and groups of puddles formed on the sidewalk. The smell of wet leaves filled the air. She left the doctor's office more confident in her decision to sell her eggs. Her boot splashed rain water onto her jeans leaving a wet spot just along her shin. She drove towards home; or what would she was considering her home for now. The roads were quiet. It was just around 10 am so most people were at work, or school. Emily had looked for another job opening, something more professional and steady but couldn't seem to find anything just yet. She remained hopeful that something would come up. She turned the car down the main street in Rosewood, lined with small shops and The Brew. She went inside to grab herself a cup of coffee. As she ordered she couldn't help but order a croissant and a small coffee to bring to Alison at work. She'd consider it a sorry-we-got-cut-off-by-A-and-didn't-finish-our-talk gift. She took in the smell of the fresh coffee beans and warm baked goods. A few customers sat in the shop talking, while another man sat typing furiously away at his computer.

"Emily" the barista called out. She walked over and grabbed the two cups and lone bag and headed back to her car. Rosewood was notoriously foggy after a rainstorm so Emily made sure to drive a bit slower than the speed limit. She couldn't help but feel nostalgic when she pulled into the high school parking lot. Way back when, she could remember how early she got here for swim practice and how late she'd stay after a meet. She looked around at all the cars in the lot. Most were nice cars; BMWs, Range Rovers, Audis, Mercedes. The kids of Rosewood were given fancy cars at the young ages of 16 and 17 and if they happened to crash them, mommy and daddy usually just bought them a new one. Emily chuckled as she shut the door of her Honda. Not Pam and Wayne, she thought to herself.

She scanned the lot and noticed two familiar cars. She saw Alison's, the one always parked next to hers in the big DiLaurentis driveway, and then another car. One she had spent years sitting in the passenger seat in. A car she happened to be familiar of the license plate number and one she certainly hadn't expected to see here. What was she doing here?

Emily entered the school and walked into the main office. She tried to remain low key as to not be seen by familiar staff, however that attempt immediately failed when she heard her name called. "Emily Fields! My goodness, what are the odds?!" Principal Hackett called out.

"Hi Principal Hackett, how are you?" She awkwardly asked. The man looked amused at her appearance at the school. "I'm doing great! I was actually looking for your contact information because we have a job opening I think you'd be interested in applying for!" He couldn't control himself. "What kind of job?" Emily asked curiously. She already had an idea considering she saw her car in the parking lot. It all made sense now. "There's an opening for Head swim coach! And I bet you wouldn't believe who else is here applying!" Emily laughed to herself, oh but she could believe it. She absolutely could believe that the universe always worked against her favor. Bringing unexpected people back into her life just as things were settling in. As Hackett finished his sentence she walked out of the door, almost as if right on cue. "Emily" Paige said matter-of-factly. "It's good to see you." She looked good. They hadn't seen each other in a while, after they ended things, but at least they were civil.

"It's good to see you too Paige." Emily said, wishing she had never brought this croissant here in the first place. _You try to do something nice and this is what happens,_ she thought to herself. "I didn't know you were applying for the position." Paige said, attempting to figure out why Emily was here. "I actually didn't know about it until just now. I was just dropping off some lunch for Alison." It was that last sentence that made Paige's face shift from friendly to angry.

"Oh" Paige said, taking a large chunk of energy to keep herself calm. "Well, you should definitely consider applying. You'd be great." Paige smiled. Emily couldn't tell if it was genuine or not. Emily nodded taking the girl's words into consideration. Paige headed for the door. "Tell Alison I say hello." She said as she walked out. Principal Hackett, watched as Paige shut the office door behind her. "Well, the offer still stands Mrs. Fields. Would you like an interview?"

Emily was unsure. What if she did get the job? Would Ali be okay with her working here too? She wasn't even positive she wanted to go back to coming to this place every day. "Can I take the day to think about it?" She asked, hoping he would allow her to come back if she made a decision. "Sure! How about you give me a call tomorrow?" He wrote down his phone number and handed it to Emily. "Thank you Principal Hackett." She walked out, placing the paper in her pocket. She headed towards Alison's class room, knowing her class would be over in 2 minutes and she had a free period for lunch now. The bell rang as Emily arrived outside the room. Teens exited the class, smelling strongly of perfume, cologne, and sweat. Alison was surprised to see Emily's face staring at her in the doorway. "What are you doing here?" She asked, not toning down her excitement levels. "I brought you some coffee, and a snack." Emily said shyly. Alison smiled. "Thanks Em. Why don't you sit and have lunch with me? I have an hour." Emily nodded and took a seat at one of the desks in the front of the room. Alison shut her class room door. You just never knew who was listening in Rosewood.


	28. Chapter 28

**Hi loves I know some of yall have asked when Emison is getting together and the answer is very soon! Sooner than you think! Soon as in possibly this chapter, because I refused to be the writer who takes 7 years to get them together... marlene. JKK but also not really. You've all been super patient so I hope you enjoy this chapter my loves. Keep commenting and let me know what you think is going to happen! Might bring in some of our least favorite characters but only to bring our loves together!**

Alison opened her croissant and took a bite. Emily barely sipped her coffee, staring off towards the large windows. She avoided making eye contact with Alison because she was unsure of how to bring up what just happened. "What's wrong Em?" Alison asked, already knowing Emily wasn't herself. "Nothing." Emily said nonchalantly. Alison frowned and tilted her head sideways at her friend. "Why don't we skip this part and you just tell me what's wrong?" Emily relented and responded. There was no use in lying. "I saw Paige before."

"Where?" Alison asked, doing her best to pretend like she didn't care about the long history the two girls had. Pretending that the prior relationships and years of kissing and hugging and going on dates, was totally irrelevant to her, but unfortunately she was having a tough time getting those images out of her head. "She was in the main office…applying for a job." Emily said cautiously. She knew this topic would more than likely upset Alison, or in the very least piss her off. She was sure Paige was the last person she'd want to see in the teacher's lounge at lunch.

"What job?" Alison continued to pry.

"Head swim coach" Emily answered. Alison suddenly smiled and came up with the same idea Principal Hackett had as well. "Why don't you apply for the job too Em? That would be perfect! You'd be amazing at it, and we'd get to work together!" Alison couldn't contain her excitement. Emily felt better, but was still unsure. "You'd be okay with that?" She asked again.

"Of course! We could carpool too!" Alison's mind raced, as she imagined a cute calendar hung on their fridge with a schedule of who would be driving and who packed lunches. She needed to relax, she told herself. She wasn't even sure Emily wanted the job. "What do you think? Would you want the job?" Alison finally asked.

"I don't know. I was looking for a better job, and this would be perfect." Emily responded.

"You'd be amazing Em, seriously. It doesn't hurt to apply." Alison offered. Even if she wasn't sure, she could still come and apply or go for an interview. Nothing was set in stone. Emily nodded agreeing with the blonde. "You're right. Principal Hackett already offered me an interview. I told him I'd call him tomorrow with an answer." Emily added.

"You totally should! It's a great opportunity." Alison ended this conversation on that after Emily agreed with her. The two sat in silence for a few minutes enjoying the lukewarm coffee that was in front of them. "Hey, so about last night" Emily's voice cracked as she spoke, which in turn made her cheeks a luminous shade of pink. Alison knew they needed to finish their talk, and she needed to be honest with Emily and get everything off her chest, she just wasn't sure this was the right time. "I'm sorry we got interrupted" she said. Emily chuckled lightly.

"It's not your fault." Blaming A for ruining their moment. Alison smiled acknowledging the same thing. "I have to bring Charlotte to the doctor tonight, so the house will be ours for about an hour. Do you want to sit down and talk then?" She offered, remaining as calm as she could, trying her best not to sound as nervous as Emily looked. Their talk was way past it's due. It was like an old library book that needed to be returned but just stayed on the floor despite constant attempts at being returned. "Yeah, that sounds good." Emily said.

"Perfect. I can pick up some food on the way home tonight. What can I get you?" Alison was sweet to ask, and Emily felt as though she was doing this more to return the favor from lunch, but Emily knew if she told Ali she didn't have to she would just come home with a smorgasbord of different take out items for them. "I'm fine with Pizza" Emily said making it easy. Alison was happy Emily relented so easily. "Pizza it is." She smiled.

Emily sat on the couch waiting for Alison to return from dropping Charlotte off. The pizza would also be accompanying her as well, and Emily was actually very excited for it. She hadn't eaten much all day and was trying to watch her diet before her surgery. She wanted to make sure she stayed as healthy as could be. The front door opened and in came Alison with a box of pizza and a small bag on the top. It could be extra bread, or a side of something Alison saw on the menu that looked tasty, but she had a feeling Alison got her a salad for the same reasoning as well. "I picked up a salad too. I know you've been trying to stay healthy lately." She said. It was astounding how the two thought the same exact things.

"Thank you." Emily said grateful of how Alison took even the simplest details into consideration. The table was already set, thanks to Emily so the two girls sat and began their meal. Each debated in their head who would speak first. "So.." Alison started. "If I remember correctly we ended off with you unsure of how you felt about things." She wasn't sure how much to say and she certainly didn't want to speak for the girl. "Yeah…"Emily said. "The girls just felt like we've always had a history you and I." Alison nodded in agreement.

"We have had quite a past." Alison stated. "It's been tough, mostly because of me." She continued. Emily was about to cut her off when Alison silenced her. "I need to say this before you say anything else." Emily paused and let Ali speak. "I was horrible to a lot of people. But mostly I was horrible to you." Alison waited, choosing her words carefully. "I treated you like your feelings for me were unreturned, and that just wasn't true. It isn't true." Emily took each syllable in carefully. She had waited for years for Alison to say something like this and mean it. She was hesitant at first, as she always was. For all she knew in just a few minutes Ali would laugh and act as if this was all some performance for an invisible audience.

"I care about you Em. More than you know. I always have, I was just scared to admit it." Alison said as a tear slowly slid down her cheek. Any moment, Emily thought. Ali loved a good show. She instantly brushed the negative thoughts away, realizing what the blonde was saying to her. "I know you've been with Paige and maybe seeing her today brought up feelings you have for her still… I don't know..but" Alison wanted to continue.

"But what?" Emily asked, dying to know what followed.

"But I know that every time I saw Paige care for you, and show you off, I was always jealous. For years I was jealous of how she was able to find herself so early on, and be proud of it. But mostly I was jealous she had you." Alison seemed upset and slightly embarrassed with admitting she was jealous of Paige. Paige of all people!

"Ali.." Emily said. She said it the way Ali loved. It was so innocent, and pure, and had just a hint of desire and comfort. Alison swore she could listen to Emily say her name like that all day and night on a constant loop. "You know how I feel about you. I mean, everyone knows how I've felt about you. Even you knew" the two laughed. "Sure, seeing Paige brought up some feelings, but they're feelings of me realizing Paige and I had our time and we've just grown apart. We work better now as friends." Alison was happy to hear that. She felt sorry the two fell out of touch, but she was honestly thrilled to know Pigskin wasn't a threat anymore. Sorry…Paige. She really needed to stop doing that. "But.." Emily added. _Oh boy, a but,_ Ali thought to herself. _This could be bad. Emily probably thought her and Ali worked best as friends too now. Ugh she knew she missed her chance. The timing must have never been in their favor._

"But I think if we were to take things to a different level, we'd have to make sure it was definitely what we both want." Emily wasn't sure that made perfect sense but in her mind it did. She didn't want Alison to feel this way today and wake up tomorrow deciding something different. She wanted to be sure for the first time in her life. Be sure of what they had and be sure it was real. "I agree" Alison said slowly. "I know it's what I want."

Emily smiled. "I know it's what I want too."

The two paused before both reaching over the table and kissing each other. It was full of passion and almost a bit rough. Ali grabbed Emily face and pulled in wanting to take the lead for years and finally hold what was hers. Emily responded cupping her hand around Ali's ear. It lasted a while until a dish fell onto the floor and shattered. The girls pulled away laughing. When they made sure neither was cut, they moved to the couch and continued to finish what they started. Time slipped away and suddenly it was 9 pm. Alison was so engulfed in Emily's kisses, and tan body that she totally forgot to pick Charlotte up from therapy.


	29. Chapter 29

**So I know some of yall have been saying I don't need to bring certain characters in to make Emison closer and I understand and I agree to an extent, but at the end of the day it is my story and I am going to add whoever I see fit to keep the story going and make it a stronger piece. It is all up in the air though so it depends who I want to bring in and not bring in. Thank you to everyone who keeps reading this. Love you more than you know.**

 ** _Charlotte's POV_**

Cold. She was getting cold. It was 9 pm and there was no sign of Alison anywhere. Ali never messed up. She knew that part of Charlotte's release was dealing with therapy sessions and doctor's visits and always keeping an eye on her. She sat on the stairs outside of the medical building tapping her foot against the concrete. One of the therapists from group sat with her. She felt bad the woman was sitting with her for over an hour now. Charlotte had no excuse either. Alison wasn't picking up and neither was Emily. She feared that this new A did something to harm them and they were trapped somewhere in the DiLaurentis house yelling and screaming to be helped. That had to be it. Something bad had to have happened because Alison was never this negligent. She didn't know what to do. She couldn't exactly up and leave this poor woman. It wouldn't look good on her part just up and running away after she waited for her ride. A few more moments went by before the woman stood up. "Why don't I just drive you home? I know it's not really allowed, but I hate to keep both of us here in the cold." The woman offered. Charlotte was hesitant. What if Ali was on her way now? What if something happened and she was just caught up in something?

She nodded and got into the car with the lady. She didn't seem threatening, and Charlotte knew that she had years of experience under her belt if she needed to outsmart this woman and get away. She opened the passenger door and slowly sat inside the car. It smelled like fresh linen. She buckled her seat belt in before realizing the woman didn't know where Charlotte lived. As if she read her mind the woman turned the car on and said "Where can I take you to?"

"I'll show you the way" Charlotte said kindly. She was grateful for the offer, and if something bad was happening to Ali, at least now she was on the way there. She knew her and Ali weren't twins but sometimes siblings had this special way of communicating with each other through thought. She tried to telepathically send Alison a sign that she would be home soon to help.

The car slowed, as it pulled into the driveway, dust rising from underneath the tires. The light was on and both cars were in the driveway. As far as she could tell right now, everything seemed normal. "Is anyone home?" The kind woman asked.

"My sister." Charlotte replied. "Thank you so much for the ride." The woman smiled in response and waited in the driveway until Charlotte was inside, to finally back out and head towards her home. She imagined a conversation between her and her husband. "

Where were you?"

"Oh one of my therapy patient's ride bailed so I had to babysit her until I said, 'screw it' and drove her home myself. So irresponsible on the caregiver."

Charlotte erased that image from her mind and focused on the more important picture. She looked and saw the dining room table askew. A dish was cracked on the floor and it looked as though the two girls were in the middle of dinner before being interrupted by something…or someone.

Charlotte frantically looked around before running into Alison's room. She could see the door was open so there was no reason for Alison to be shocked when she walked in. Charlotte had pictured walking into a lot of was a list she had thought of:

-a room filled with severed doll heads

-a room with piles of dead animal parts

-a room filled with human body parts

-a room in which Ali and Emily both were dead or injured on the ground

-a room with a blood splattered note across the windows

Those were just some of the possibilities she had imagined, so when she walked in to find a completely different scenario unfolding before her, she was absolutely shocked.

—-

Alison jumped up first after hearing her name be choked out of Charlotte's mouth. "Charlotte!" she yelled in response. She sounded shocked, slightly embarrassed, but what upset Charlotte most was that there was no detection of Alison sounding apologetic. Charlotte immediately walked out of the room. _So this is why she didn't pick me up_ , she thought to herself.

She stormed into her room, feeling betrayed by her only sister. Alison and Emily hurriedly got dressed. Emily sat on the edge of Ali's bed staring at Alison who paced back and forth before speaking. "I forgot to pick her up. I can't believe I forgot to pick her up. I'm a horrible sister." Alison repeated to no one in particular. Emily had seen Ali do awful things throughout their childhood and she knew that accidentally forgetting to pick up her sister was by no means an excuse to call herself a terrible person. It was simply an accident! Charlotte had to understand they were caught up in a moment that was long overdue, and God so incredibly sexy and hot….Emily needed to control her thoughts. She still couldn't fathom what just happened between the two. The passion, the heat, the force. The moaning, the touching, the kissing.

"She'll understand Ali, it was an accident." Emily said in her innocent little voice. She felt partially responsible. After all, she was the sole reason Alison didn't pick Charlotte up. Emily could already picture herself packing her bags and being told to go live with Hanna. These arrangements just _weren't going to work._ She could hear Alison saying the words now.

Alison ignored Emily's comment and continued rationalizing things out loud to herself. "I have to talk to her. I need to go in there and just be honest." Not an easy task for Alison by the way. But she owed her sister complete honesty. By no means did she regret the last hour and a half. It was the best hour and a half of her whole life. It was a moment she dreamt about for years but of course as all good things come, they single-handedly come linked with bad.

Ali walked out of the room finally and knocked on Charlotte's door. "Charlotte? Can I come in?" Ali asked. There was no response. Ali asked again and when she got the same answer, she decided to slowly open the door. Except when she opened the bedroom door, she found an empty room, and a window that was left open. Just wide enough for a person to fit through. The curtains blew as the fall breeze outside was strong. "She's gone" Alison said loud enough for Emily to hear. "What?" Emily asked, needing to be told just one more time to make sure she heard Alison correctly. "She's gone Emily! She's not here!" Alison yelled, this time with fury and rage. It was a large internal fire that was building inside of Alison, and the only person responsible for it, she thought, was herself.


	30. Chapter 30

By now it was almost 10 pm and all the girls were at Alison's house coming up with places Charlotte might be, people she may have ran away with, and plans on who would go with who to look for her. Alison sat on the couch, staring off into the distance, not really listening to the girls. Emily took the lead on this, considering the girls weren't exactly thrilled to be part of this rescue mission that involved finding Charlotte. They didn't ask any questions about why Charlotte left, they just hurried over when they saw how frantic Emily's 911 call to them was. "Do we know why she left?" Spencer finally asked. The girls were all curious as to what happened in the last few hours that caused this whole mess. Emily looked over at Alison, not wanting to be the one who answered this question. Alison took a minute. She wanted to tell the girls about her and Emily but this wasn't the right time. "It was my fault. I forgot to pick her up from therapy." Alison finally said. It wasn't a lie. She just wouldn't be throwing in why she had forgot.

"You forgot?!" Hanna exclaimed.

"Yes Hanna, I forgot. I'm a terrible person, I get it." Alison slumped in her chair and Emily, who was sitting right next to the blonde, immediately put her hand on her shoulder to comfort her. It didn't go unnoticed though. Hanna and Spencer looked over at each other but knowing what was going on between the two. "No one's saying that Ali, it was an accident." Emily said, causing both Hanna and Spencer to roll their eyes at their friend. They loved Emily and would support her no matter who she was with, but they still were unsure of Alison and Charlotte and they just wanted to make sure Alison wasn't playing Emily to get her sister home.

"Well, there's five of us, I'm sure if we split up we can find her." Spence said rationally.

"Spencer and I can drive around town." Aria offered. Hanna looked glaringly at her friend, knowing she would be drafted to a car with Alison and Emily. She was glad though at least she could keep an eye on Alison and make sure she wasn't manipulating Emily. "Okay, Ali, Hanna and I will go to the Lost Woods. Maybe she's there?" Emily still wasn't sure. For all they knew Charlotte could be on a plane to France this very moment. The girls raced off towards their vehicles and headed on to Rosewood.

The town center was quiet. It was 11 pm on a Wednesday so most of the shops were closed and very few people walked around this late. A few stragglers walked through, stumbling across the sidewalk. Spencer assumed they were drunk by their loud, obnoxious demeanor. They drove slowly, looking all over. They looked for hoodies, figures, blondes, anyone Charlotte's height. They were driving slow but didn't seem to have any luck.

—

All roads lead to the Lost Woods Resort. Emily got out first, keeping an eye out for anything suspicious. There were no cars in the driveway, not that Charlotte had a car to drive, that was, unless she stole one. Hanna and Alison followed as the trio walked into the main entrance. Hopefully whoever was here, could tell them if they saw Charlotte.

—

The girls had finished their loop around town, when they ended up back on the main road. Aria and Spencer were just about to give up. They stopped to grab coffee at a coffee shop down the road that stayed open later than the rest. The people of Rosewood loved their coffee. Especially Spencer. "Alright, I don't think we're going to find her. If Charlotte wants to be found she will be." Spencer said. "Yeah, and I'm getting car sick" Aria stated. "No offense." Spencer looked jokingly looked upset. "Hey the bell tower isn't usually open at night is it?" Aria asked.

"That's not where people typically go to pray." Spencer said sarcastically. She pulled the car against the sidewalk across the street. The two got out of the car and walked towards the church. Leaves on the trees were just turning their bright oranges and yellows. There were small piles of leaves that had fallen prematurely already lined on the curbs. At least the landscape on the town looked welcoming. Once anyone was here for long enough to know the messed up things Rosewood really had to offer, nice landscaping wouldn't be enough to keep them here.

The bell tower door was open. It was a strange sight. So strange that Aria didn't realize she was walking towards Charlotte. She looked like herself. She didn't look broken. She looked somewhat peaceful. Aria screamed. Spencer ran over to find Aria standing in front of the blonde. Her body laying across the lawn. Spencer slowly moved closer and put her hand on the girl's neck to feel if there was a pulse. In those few seconds, those moments of not knowing, the two girls were filled with fear, and for a brief nanosecond, relief. Maybe the torture was over?

"She's alive. There's barely a pulse but she's alive." As Spencer spoke Aria typed 911 into her phone. "Charlotte it's going to be okay, we're here. Stay with us." Spencer spoke to the unconscious girl. Did she jump? Was she pushed? There was no one around who could answer their questions, and the only person who could truly tell them was hanging on by a thread. Spencer was leaning over Charlotte keeping an eye on her breathing. "Where's the police?!" She yelled. "They said they're on their way." Aria answered.

"We can't let her die!" Spencer yelled. They knew if Charlotte died there, they would be in mounds of trouble. They'd have to deal with Tanner questioning them and asking why their DNA was all over the crime scene. She was sure Tanner would come up with 10 different ways to spin this to look like the girls were responsible. "Call Alison!" Spencer yelled out. Aria dialed as fast as she could, knowing the conversation she was about to have was going to hurt Alison.


	31. Chapter 31

**Hi my lovelies. I was writing this for a while because I just couldn't get myself to kill Charlotte. I love her character so much (plus I love Vanessa Ray) and honestly I thought Charlotte deserved so much more than what she was given, so I am giving her life here in my little story. Hope you like this chapter.**

It was around 1 am when they finally got news from a doctor. Charlotte was very badly injured when she fell from the bell tower. Authorities were notified and unsure if this was an attempted homicide or suicide. Charlotte was the only one to answer that and right now she was still in surgery. Alison sat in the waiting room with the girls, Emily right by her side. Ali was certain somebody pushed her. That just because they had an argument it didn't mean Charlotte was unstable enough to kill herself. "She has a mental illness Ali. Anything could have set her off!" Spencer tried explaining to Alison. "If she jumped, I'll never forgive myself." Alison ended their conversation with that. "Miss DiLaurentis" a doctor said. That doctor happened to be the infamous Wren Kingston (MD). "I'm so sorry about Charlotte" he said in his charming British accent. "Her surgery went well. She's in a medically-induced coma right now, but she should be awake soon." He added. The girls were happy to hear that she would make a full recovery. Wren left the girls alone after reminding Alison how lucky she was that Charlotte wasn't injured worse. He let them know too, that Charlotte wasn't the first person to attempt to commit suicide by jumping from the bell tower. Back in the early 1950s another Radley patient had done the same thing, except he succeeded.

Once the girls were certain of her recovery and Alison continuously told them they didn't have to stay, they agreed to leave the hospital. "Keep us updated Ali" Hanna said kindly.

"I will Han, thank you guys for everything tonight. I couldn't ask for better friends." Alison replied. The girls smiled at Alison. She had the power to make everyone feel so special and important, even when she was feeling down. Emily walked the girls towards the exit before Hanna stopped. "Em, you can come stay with me tonight, if you want." Emily took a second before answering her friend. "Thank you, but I think I'm going to stay here with Ali. She needs me." The girls nodded understanding how loyal Emily was and if it were any of them waiting for their family members to get out of surgery, Emily would be the one sitting there waiting with them. They hugged the tan brunette before saying goodbye. "Try to get some sleep. Call us if you need anything please. We love you." Spencer said.

"I love you guys too" Emily answered back. She watched as her friends walked out together into the dark night. She imagined Alison was getting tired. She yawned at the thought and walked back over to Ali who was picking at her coffee cup. "Do you need anything?" Emily asked. She'd get whatever Alison wanted. "I'm okay Em. You really don't have to stay." Alison said, feeling sorry for the girl. Now that it was past midnight, Emily was technically coming back here to this hospital tomorrow to donate her eggs. She didn't want Emily to miss out on whatever sleep she could get. "I'm not leaving you Ali" Emily said sternly. Alison didn't argue. She was too tired to fight her and quite honestly she didn't hate having Emily next to her. In fact she loved being as close as possible to her friend. Some would have taken the last few days as a sign. That every time they tried to talk about their future or in tonight's case, act on their suppressed feelings, they were interrupted. However the girls were used to never having luck on their side.

"I'm sorry about tonight." Alison apologized. If only she had been responsible enough to remember to pick her up. If she hadn't been so selfish. She loved Emily but she loved Charlotte too. Not more, not less, but Charlotte was her family now. She couldn't ditch her for the love of her life. "Don't be sorry Ali. It was an accident." Emily said, kind of missing Alison's point.

"No, I'm sorry about us." Alison said. Emily's heart sank. _Here we go,_ she thought to herself. Old Ali was back to take away everything they had just built up. "What are you sorry about?" Emily asked, clearly nervous. "I'm sorry we keep getting interrupted every time we try to talk or.." Alison didn't finish her sentence. Emily breathed an audible sigh of relief. Alison noticed. "You look like you just saw a ghost. What's wrong?"

"Nothing. I just thought you were going to say something else." Emily answered truthfully. She wanted Alison to know that even though she felt so strongly about her, she was still scared things could come crashing down any minute. "Like what?"' Alison inquired.

"I don't know.." Emily felt like she opened a can of worms. "Maybe that you weren't really interested in me that way…or something." Her face was bright red. She was embarrassed she had even brought it up. They weren't in high school anymore. If Alison said she liked her, she probably meant it. Alison's heart sunk a little. She knew it would take a lot of time to really prove herself to Emily but she was more than willing to do it. "Em, I love you. I know sitting her in this waiting room, in a hospital, isn't exactly the most romantic place to do this, but I will spend the rest of my life proving to you how much I love you. Even now, years later, you're still the only person who stays by my side. You see a side of me that I couldn't even see myself." Alison was tearing up. She blamed it on the emotional toll tonight had on her, but really she was just passionate about Emily. "I love you too Ali." Emily said with her puppy-dog eyes staring right into Alison's clear blue eyes. They shared a kiss. A night janitor walked by with his cleaning cart and looked over as if he was unsure of what he was seeing, and a little turned on. Alison caught his glance and spoke up. "Why don't you take a picture?" She said. The girls laughed as Alison placed her head on Emily's strong shoulder. If there was one place she knew she could fall asleep, it was in Emily's arms.


	32. Chapter 32

The sun shined brightly into Alison's eyes. She slowly lifted her head scrunching her eyes from the bright light directly in her eyes. Emily was still asleep, in what Alison could only imagine was a very uncomfortable position. She felt bad for passing out on her, knowing Emily probably did her best to stay still and not disturb Ali. She checked her phone. It was just after 6:30. She got up to call Rosewood High and tell them she wouldn't be in school the next few days. She figured the news had spread overnight. News spread like wildfire here in Rosewood, so she was sure Principal Hackett was expecting her call. He was kind and very accommodating. He asked if Emily would be willing to switch her interview to today, despite the circumstances. The board was getting antsy because they wanted to fill the coaching position as soon as possible and Hackett wanted to give Emily a fair chance. "I'm sure she wouldn't mind." Alison spoke on behalf of her friend…girlfriend? That hadn't established that official titles yet, because they both dozed off but she was sure they'd get to that soon. "That's terrific. If she could meet here around noon, I'd love to interview her." Alison thanked him for giving her a chance, reminding him how great of an athletic Emily was and how excited she was when he offered her an interview. "She's looking forward to it Principal Hackett." She hung up the phone hoping Emily wouldn't be too upset with her for planning this interview, but if she could help Emily get the job, she would feel like she succeeded.

Emily stood up from the chair stretching her already sore limbs out. "What am I looking forward to?" Emily asked, must having overheard Alison's conversation. "I know it's last minute but Hackett wanted to know if you could come in today for the interview…and I told him yes." Alison was unsure of Emily's face. It didn't scream angry and it didn't scream happy. Was she just okay with this? Ali would take that. "What time did he say?" Emily asked, holding back a yawn.

"Noon." Alison said almost like she was phrasing a question. Emily nodded, still too tired to entirely process this conversation. "Why don't you go home for a bit and rest? You can get ready for your interview, Coach Fields." Alison ended her offer with a sexy tone, emphasized on Coach Fields. Emily chuckled bashful. "Are you sure you don't want me to stay?" Emily asked, knowing Alison would tell her she was sure. "Em, you slept practically standing up. Go get some sleep. I'll be okay." Alison smiled encouragingly to prove to the girl she would be alright.

"You'll call me if anything changes? I'll come right over." Emily said matter-of-factly.

"Of course. And you'll call me when you get the job?" Alison asked flirtatiously.

"We'll see about that.' Emily replied. She leaned over and kissed the blonde before heading out. Alison stayed seated for a few minutes just smiling to herself. The girl she loved would be getting a job at school with her. She just knew it.

—

Emily slept for a few hours, and then showered. She felt better, at least a little more refreshed than earlier. She informed the girls of her leaving the hospital and heading over to the high school soon. They wished her good luck as she injected herself with her last shot before the surgery tomorrow. She was nervous, but she was also nervous for this interview, so the two sort of cancelled each other out.

Alison sat in the food court alone, sipping on a warm team and eating a blueberry muffin. She picked apart the top and left scattered crumbs on her napkin. Charlotte still wasn't awake yet and she wasn't sure what to do with herself. Just as she was about to get up and leave she was greeted by a familiar voice. "Good morning Alison." Wren said.

"Good morning" Alison replied. She was hesitant to continue to talk with Wren. If she was being honest, Wren always gave Alison a weird vibe. He seemed way too interested in the girls' lives. Just because he was dating Melissa for a while didn't give him the right to be a creep. The girls should have been just a small background part of his life. "How are you doing?" the words glided off of his tongue. He seemed just as hesitant to continue talking to her. "Fine." Alison said shortly. "I'm sorry about Charlotte. Truly. I want to find out who did this to her just as much as you do." Wren said. Alison turned her head staring directly at Wren. What did he just say?

"So she didn't jump?" Alison asked. If Charlotte was still in a coma how could they have known? Did the police figure it out that fast? Wren looked confused for a brief second, forgetting that Alison wasn't updated on her sister's case. "Well…Charlotte called me last night, after she left your house." Wren confessed. Alison looked confused. Charlotte still talked to Wren? She guessed it made sense. Wren was her doctor at Radley for quite a while so the two had a history. "What did she say?" Wren took a deep breath before answering the question.

"She told me you forgot to pick her up from therapy, and then she saw you were with Emily. She said she felt that you cared more about your friends than her, so she left." Wren seemed to know more than he let on but Alison was too in shock to press him. She felt guilty that Charlotte felt this way. She wasn't sure how true this was but if Wren knew the reason why Charlotte was upset, she must have talked to him then. "So why do you think she was pushed?" Alison asked. His story didn't answer the main question.

"Well, I was on the phone with her when she got to the church. She said she was going to walk up to the bell tower and get some fresh air. I told her to just stay in the church but she insisted on going up there…" he took a pause before finishing. "While we were talking I heard her gasp and she dropped the phone. I could hear her struggling with someone and then I heard nothing." Alison wasn't sure how true this story was but she wasn't exactly sure why Wren would lie.

"Did you call the police?" she questioned.

"Yes, they said another person called already." Wren answered robotically.

"Aria" Alison said to herself.

"They didn't tell me who it was." Wren said to her, despite her not looking for an answer.

"How's she doing now?" Alison changed the subject.

"She's still in a coma but her vitals have gone up significantly." Wren said sounding hopeful. Alison smiled. "Thank you." Wren smiled before getting up from the table.

"You're welcome." He started to walk away before coming back and standing over the table. "Would you like to see her? I can sneak you in." Wren offered. Alison took a moment before deciding that she would like to see her no matter who snuck her into the room.

—

Emily walked out of the office, with Principal Hackett. He was patting her on the back, congratulating her for getting the job. She had to hand it to herself, the interview went very well, and she forgot how much she missed swimming. It came naturally to her. It was so easy. It was the one thing in her life she didn't have to think about. She could always come back to it. Emily was also happy to have a steady source of income now. She held in her hand a binder filled with information about the swim team, and a bright blue jacket that said "Rosewood High Sharks". The more important part being the word "coach" embroidered on the left chest. She secretly always dreamed of wearing a jacket that said the word coach on it.

Emily wanted to tell Alison in person. She decided she'd head straight to the hospital, knowing Alison would still be there waiting, until she realized Alison probably wanted to change her clothes. So she stopped home and grabbed a new outfit for her. Just then her phone rang. She looked down assuming it was Alison asking about the interview, so she was shocked to see a blocked number. She should have expected it. The girls hadn't gotten a message in a few hours.

 _"_ _I couldn't let that bitch steal my spotlight. She's not the one you're looking for. Try and find me!- A"_

Emily's stomach sunk. So Charlotte wasn't sending them messages after all. She really had changed. She felt guilty for putting Charlotte through such a hard time at dinner that night. Immediately, her phone rang. It was another group text, but this time, the recipients were just her friends.

 _Hanna: Did you get that text?_

 _Spencer: We all did._

 _Aria: Another freakin A? How many are there?_

 _Spencer: I guess Charlotte really did change._

 _Hanna: Can we all meet up?_

 _Emily: Yes please._


	33. Chapter 33

**Hello my lovelies, I am sorry I made you wait a few days, but I was away and unable to write. But I am back now and I have written a longer chapter with many small cute Emison pieces and I know this is a long story but I plan on writing more and more until I can't anymore because I love Emison. So Thank you all as always I love you so so much! Comment and favorite if you like, XOXO**

The girls arrived at Hanna's around 2:30. Ali came back from the hospital after forcing Wren to promise he'd call her the second Charlotte woke up. Emily sat closely to Alison, holding her hand for support. Again, the girls took notice of the gesture but refused to comment. When the two felt they were ready to talk about where they were, they would. "So A basically just confirmed that Charlotte didn't jump?" Spencer asked/said. She wasn't so much asking but, thinking out loud in the way Spencer does. "I knew she didn't jump." Alison said flatly. Emily tightened her grip on the girl's hand to show her support.

"I don't know about you guys, but I'm out of ideas. A could be anyone. Maybe Ali has a step-brother-sister-grandma we don't know about." Hanna jokingly added. Alison gave her a quick glance that Hanna knew meant _shut up._ "I talked to Wren." Alison said.

"Did he say anything helpful?" Spencer asked, interested in Alison's encounter with her sister's ex-lover. Alison noticed the slight incline in Spencer's tone. "Yeah, actually."

"What did he say?" Aria asked. Emily looked at Alison waiting for her to answer Aria's question. She didn't know Ali had had another conversation with Wren. Emily wasn't the biggest fan of Wren. He had helped her way back when she had her ulcer, and took care of her during her stay at the hospital, and while she was grateful for all of that, she always had a slight feeling that Wren was somehow more than he seemed. He was intelligent, he was charming, and he had almost another sense that Emily felt gave him the potential to be an A suspect. For years, the girls thought Wren and Melissa were behind everything. How heartbroken Spencer would have been to find out her sister and her boyfriend were torturing her all along. Too bad, that reality came true for Alison instead.

"He said that he talked to Charlotte after she left my house, and that he heard her struggling with someone in the bell tower." Alison had a sadness in her voice.

"Did he say who?" Emily asked. If Wren heard a voice, or a groan even maybe he could tell if the person was male or female. Maybe he could even tell if Charlotte knew the person. That would be a huge help in narrowing down their suspects. "He said he couldn't tell who it was."Ali replied. The girls were silent for a while before Alison spoke up again. "Em, I never asked how your interview went." The girls all chimed in agreeing with Alison.

"Yeah Em, did you get the job?" Hanna questioned as well. Emily blushed, Alison noticing it all. The way her cheeks turned a beautiful shade of pink, that complimented her tan skin. Her smile, showing all her teeth. The way she let her hair fall slightly in front of her face, almost hiding herself from the girls. Alison loved every single thing about her. She was so bashful and humble. She already knew by the way Emily smiled and blushed that she would be sharing good news with the girls. "It went well actually. I got the job." Emily said trying to hide her excitement. The girls all bounced up, glad to finally have some good news. "Em that's amazing! I'm so proud of you!" Alison said first, hugging her. Their friends looked at each other, questioning the two's relationship yet again. "Congrats Em!" Hanna said. Alison grabbed the champagne bottle she happened to have in her purse, because she just knew her mermaid would get the job. She may have also talked to Paige and told her to back off the position but that was something no one needed to know about. "Cheers!" Alison laughed as she popped open the bottle.

"Ali where did you get that?" Emily asked, chuckling at her girlfriend.

"I knew you were going to get the job. So I bought it on the way home from the hospital." Alison stated. The girls laughed as Hanna grabbed five glasses for the girls, and they celebrated. Ali made sure her phone was on loud incase of any updates but she was happy to be in this moment right now with her friends.

—-

 **Friday Morning: 6:30 AM**

Emily woke up first. Her alarm was set for 6:45 so she knew she had time to spare. Ali slept next to her. She was so beautiful. Her eyes were closed and Emily was sure it looked like she was smiling. Last night they fell asleep watching some black and white film Alison chose. Despite the last few nights of sex, Ali made Em promise that Thursday night would be a night of no sex. She wanted Emily to be as healthy as could be going into her surgery. As much as she wanted to touch her mermaid, she told herself this was for the better. They sat in the dim lit room, while Alison rubbed Emily's head and Emily kissed Alison's neck. It was her weakness. The second Emily's lips came within a few inches of her neck, chills went down her body. Her eyes instinctively would close and she moaned lightly, aching for more.

Emily was nervous. She stayed in bed, staring at the ceiling, not wanting to move and risk waking Ali. To Emily, there was no better feeling in the world than waking up right next to the love of her life. They were getting so domesticated already. It was like a puzzle that took forever to start, but once it began, the rest of the pieces fell right into place. It was surprisingly easy. The two would both agree that easy was never a word that would describe either of them. Their lives had been the exact opposite of easy. So complex, and intense, it wouldn't make sense to anyone else. But being together now, even with everything else going on, it was somehow so easy.

Ali moved slightly, and opened her eyes. She smiled the second she saw her mermaid laying next to her. "Good morning Em" Alison said, her voice raspy from sleep.

"Good morning" Emily said as she leaned over and kissed her girlfriend. Alison placed her hand on Emily's face, cupping her cheek. "Are you sure you still want to do this?" Ali asked. Emily appreciated that Ali got right to the point, and quite honestly, with the way things were going between the two, Emily felt guilty she was getting rid of her eggs. What if the two decided to have a baby in the future? Ali could always have the baby, or they could adopt. They had options. Ali even supported Emily's decision so she figured she wasn't too concerned. "I'm sure." Emily answered.

They kissed again before both getting up and getting ready. Alison took a quick shower while Emily sat on the bed staring off into the distance. She was dressed in comfortable clothes. Rosewood High Sharks, sweatpants and a t shirt that happened to be Alison's. Ali claimed it was a good luck t-shirt and although she knew Emily wouldn't be wearing the shirt during surgery, she felt that having it on for now would at least be helpful.

As Emily looked at the room, she couldn't help but wish her mom was here. Pam was a hell of a woman, and an incredible mom. Her and Emily didn't agree on everything, but Pam really had a way of being nurturing and kind, and she could always make Emily feel better. She wondered what her mother was doing at the moment. She was supposed to be in Texas now. Her flight from Hawaii should have landed a few days ago. She sent Emily pictures from all the places she had gone. Emily was so proud of her for going on this solo trip and finding herself. She couldn't have told her what she was doing.

Emily heard the shower shut off. A few moments later a dripping Alison walked out with a towel around her. "I'll be ready in a few." She said smiling. She could tell Emily was nervous, which was why she had a surprise for her waiting. She didn't want to tell her in fears Emily would be angry but she felt this secret was best if kept until after the surgery.


	34. Chapter 34

**Hi lovelies. Thank you for reading as always. I'm sorry somethings haven't been scientifically** **accurate. I'm starting to look into things more before writing to make it more realistic, but please continue to point anything out so I can try and do better for you guys! Hope you like this! XOXO**

 **Friday Morning 8:00 am**

Alison skipped breakfast because Emily couldn't eat before going under and she'd be damned if she sat and enjoyed breakfast while her girlfriend couldn't. She could wait another hour to eat while Em was in surgery. The car ride was quiet. Alison drove, one hand on the wheel, another tightly grasping Emily's had. The radio played only commercials, and those annoying phone taps Alison hated. It was like the radio never played music during commuter time. Emily started work next week, so Alison planned on making a playlist for their carpools to and from work.

Alison's phone buzzed. Her heart fluttered a little faster. Every time it vibrated or chimed she felt nauseous. Alison glanced over to see Emily looking out the window, paying no mind to the noise the phone made. Ali pulled into the parking lot of the hospital, on the same-day surgery side. They sat for a brief moment after Ali pulled in. They were early, as Emily had planned to be. She wanted to make sure everything would go well.

"You ready to go in?" Ali asked.

"Yep." Emily said taking a deep breath. Alison grabbed her phone to find messages from her friends. She set up a group chat between her friends, minus Emily, last night. She told the girls that while her and Em were at the hospital she wanted them to go over to her house and set up the living room for a perfect comfy sleepover. Of course, she didn't make it seem romantic, she just made it seem like she was doing something nice for her friend who she happened to live with. The girls didn't question it, because they'd do anything to make Emily happy. Hanna was shocked to see Ali going through such great lengths to be such a good friend. She didn't mean it offensively, this just wasn't typical Alison behavior.

The girls went to the store and bought some of Emily's favorite movies, a few magazines, and stocked the kitchen up on food. Ali gave them strict instructions on what to get. Alison had also already bought candles to make it more romantic, but those were hidden for now. She knew she couldn't be intimate with Emily physically for the new few days, but she didn't care. She wanted to make her happy mentally and prove to her she's changed.

They walked into the hospital and Emily signed in. Ali sat watching her girlfriend sign her name on the papers. She was doing such an incredible thing. Allowing a family to have a baby. Emily sat down next to Alison who immediately reached for the brunette's hand.

 **Friday 8:45 am**

Emily was in surgery and after having a small breakfast, Ali stopped by to see Charlotte, just like she had the last few days. She sat with Charlotte talking to her about what was going on in her life. Having Charlotte there to talk to really helped Alison. She knew Charlotte couldn't answer but she could be honest with her. She wished for her sister to wake up so she could talk to her and apologize for what happened. If she could go back in time and do it over she would have never forgot to pick her up. Charlotte lay still in the hospital bed. Nurses occasionally came in and out to change tubes and move Charlotte's legs and arms.

"I'm sorry Charlotte. I know I say this every time I'm here, but I'll say it everyday until you wake up. I should have been smarter, more responsible." She paused to wipe a tear. "You've been there for me, when we were younger, and I know there was a part in the middle that wasn't necessarily good, but I know you never stopped caring about me. I'm sorry I let you down." She took a pause again, staring at her sister, who still didn't move. "I know you probably hate me. I've been a terrible sister." Alison said through her tears. After wiping her tear, she swore she heard Charlotte respond. It was a light "don't be so dramatic Ali." Alison had heard Charlotte say this line many times. It was one of CeCe/Charlotte's most famous. She heard it crystal clear. She looked over to see Charlotte's eyes open, and staring back at her. "Charlotte!" Alison chimed through her tears. "You're awake!"

"Yeah" Charlotte said more vulnerable, realizing where she was.

"Are you okay? I'm so sorry." Alison didn't know where to start. She had a hundred things she wanted to say to her sister. Charlotte looked around the room confused, and a bit frightened. She wasn't sure who was listening. Alison was about to shut the door, when nurses came flooding in. "Look who's awake!" a female nurse chirped. "So glad you're finally conscious Charlotte. How are you feeling?" In an instant, Alison's moment to talk with her sister was taken over by nurses and doctor's checking her out. That included Wren. Wren stayed off in the distance of the room for a moment and Charlotte locked eyes with him. Her attitude changed once Wren finished taking his notes and walked out. Alison took note of it and reminded herself she needed to ask Charlotte if she was afraid of Wren. Alison checked her watch frantically. Emily would be out of surgery soon and she was torn. She promised Emily she would be there when she woke up, but she couldn't ditch her sister again. This was the mess that got them here in the first place.

The nurses finally left, after speaking with Alison and reminding her that Charlotte went through a traumatic experience, and she would need to stay overnight so they could keep an eye on her progress. Ali checked her watch again. "You have somewhere you need to be?" Charlotte questioned. Alison paused before answering. She was done with the lies she reminded herself. "Actually Em, is here too. She's getting a small procedure done and she should be finished soon. I promised her I'd be there when she wakes up." Alison said hoping her honestly wouldn't upset her sister. "Just like you were here for me." Charlotte said smiling. Alison smiled back in relief. "Look, Charlotte I'm so sorry about that night." Alison tried to apologize but Charlotte cut her off. "Why didn't you tell me, you were together?" Charlotte asked, without saying Emily's name. Alison was stunned by the question. "I don't know…" she paused, thinking about what to say. "We really weren't at the time. It just happened. Everything at once, all our feelings built up and lead to that night." Charlotte smiled, appreciating the openness, and honesty from her sister. "I didn't leave because I was mad at you Ali. I'm a little more mature than that. Plus, I've always known you had a thing for Emily." Charlotte laughed.

"You weren't mad?" Alison asked, confused.

"No. I left because there was a note." Charlotte whispered.

"Where was the note?" Alison asked confused.

"Your bedroom door. You must not have seen it….or…I don't know maybe A came in when you and Emily were…." Charlotte didn't finish that sentence.

"What did it say?" Alison needed answers. She was overwhelmed right now.

"She's found someone else to take care of. Leave now, or you ruin this." Charlotte repeated monotonously.

"Ruin what?" Alison didn't understand.

"I didn't know what it meant. That's why I walked in. When I saw you and Emily together I figured A meant, they'd ruin you and her. So I left." Charlotte teared up. "I didn't want to risk anything happening to you. I hurt you all so badly, leaving seemed like the least I could do. You both looked really happy." Charlotte tried holding back her tears, but was failing. Alison had tears flowing down her face too. "I'm so sorry" was all Alison could say.

"I'm sorry too." Charlotte said, not knowing what else to say.

"Why did you go to the bell tower?" Alison asked,leading up to the bigger question of who pushed her. "I used to go there a lot when I would leave Radley. It had great views of the town." Charlotte answered truthfully. "Who pushed you?" Alison looked terrified, not sure if she wanted to know the answer. "I don't know. I was on the phone and then I don't remember anything else." Charlotte tried really hard to think, but her brain had no recollection of anything but her phone call. "Who were you on the phone with?" Alison pried some more. Charlotte paused before answer the last question.

"Noel Khan."


	35. Chapter 35

**Naturally I've been changing things up a bit so here I am at it again. Hopefully I'm not straying too far, but lately my mind has 100000 ideas a minute. Let me know what you're thinking!**

"Noel Kahn?" Alison repeated. "Why did you call him?" Alison was shocked. Now that she knew Wren lied to her, he was immediately at the top of her list of A suspects. "I figured he could help me leave town…like last time." Charlotte was referring to the time she met Alison in New York and with the help of Noel Kahn, Ali gave her her Vivian Darkbloom passport and a plane ticket for France.

"What did he say?" Ali was in disbelief.

"Nothing. He didn't answer the phone, so I left a voicemail." Charlotte was confused. If Wren knew Charlotte was on the phone before she was pushed, then he must have been there. "You look like you saw a ghost. What's wrong?" Charlotte asked.

"Uh…I need to go check on Emily. I promise I'll be back." Ali smiled reassuring her sister things would be okay. Charlotte took note of Alison's sudden change in demeanor but smiled, letting her go. "Come back for me." She joked.

"Of course." Ali's voice was more high pitched than she intended, but she walked out anyway.

 **Friday 10 am**

"Hey beautiful. How do you feel?" Emily could heard Alison's voice through the fog of her anesthesia wearing off. "You're here." Emily said smiling. Ali chuckled at her girlfriend. She was out of it, but the surgery went well, and the eggs were all retrieved with no issues. As long as Emily took the rest of the day off, and relaxed tomorrow she would be fine. "Of course I'm here. I promised, didn't I?" Alison was too amused.

"I love you." Emily said, mumbling the words. Her eyes were barely open, but she was still so perfect. "I love you too silly. Get some rest. Everything went well. I can take you home in a little bit." Alison reminded her.

"Okay Ali." Emily said shutting her eyes. Ali waited a few minutes before leaving, making sure Emily was asleep. She walked into the hallway and down to Charlotte's room. Before walking into the room, she found Wren, filling in a chart at the nurse's station. "Alison. So glad Charlotte is awake. It's amazing isn't it?" Alison nodded.

"It is." She was short.

"I heard Emily's surgery went well too. Hell of a day I imagine." Wren was trying to be friendly but Alison was having none of it. "Yeah, crazy" she paused. "You don't seem too nervous." Alison accused. Wren turned looking confused. "Sorry?" He asked.

"I'd be nervous, what with the girl that was pushed, finally being awake. I'm sure she's going to tell people what happened. Especially the police." Alison tried to threaten Wren, but his black eyes started right back into her soul. "You like to assume things Alison. Too bad I was here the night she was pushed." Wren said, in a way that meant he wanted Ali to check his alibi so she could see his whereabouts. "And we all know how the Rosewood police operate.I'm sure whoever did it isn't too worried. Lots of things happen in this town." Alison stared back at Wren pretending to be un-phased by him, but she ended up watching as he shut his binder and walked away.

She entered Charlotte's room. Charlotte excited her sister was back. "How's Emily?" she asked.

"Great. I can take her home soon." Alison seemed tired and honestly a little defeated.

"Can you talk to me Ali? What's wrong?" Charlotte pleaded with her sister for honesty. It was all Charlotte wanted. She deserved honesty and respect, and love. Ali took a deep breath before answering her sister. "I think Wren is the one who pushed you." She studied Charlotte's reaction. It was incredible that there was no change in her face. Not even a subtle eyebrow lift. "What are you thinking?" Alison questioned.

"I'd love to say I'm surprised but honestly I'm not." Charlotte eerily answered. Alison looked confused. She was shocked, why wasn't Charlotte? "Why aren't you?" Ali had to ask.

"Because I made a lot of enemies Ali," Charlotte said. Alison could feel herself having the same conversation with her friends years back when they were trying to figure out who A was. Just like Charlotte, Alison had also made a lot of enemies. They both knew that about each other. They would watch and laugh as the other went and tore down another person. Years prior, Charlotte sat in her car and drove Ali to find Paige, knowing damn well Alison was just going to torment her. They fed off of each other's drama. "Wren and I have a long history," Charlotte went on. "He was at Radley when I was there, and there were nights when I was so lonely…and he would talk to me and listen." Charlotte teared up. "I had no one in Radley. He listened and he was there physically…I never really got a chance to love anyone."

"You loved Wren?" Alison was shocked. She never would have thought Charlotte would be into Wren. And he was her doctor! Was that even allowed? "I don't think I'd call it love" Charlotte chuckled, wiping a tear from her face. "We kissed one night" she paused for Ali's disgusted reaction which never came. Ali patiently waited for the rest of the story. "He pulled away because he was dating Melissa at the time. He couldn't cheat on his perfect Hastings girlfriend." There was definitely some hatred in Charlotte's tone when she mentioned Melissa. "I'm sorry Charlotte." Alison felt horrible for her sister. She remembered the nights her and CeCe would go out and how confident she was with guys. She seemed confident when she dated Jason, but that was something Ali was set on keeping erased from her mind.

"You always seemed so confident when we were younger." Alison was trying to make sense of her memories. "You know what we used to say. 'You're always better off with a really good lie.'" Charlotte said, quoting her sister. They paused, as Wren came into the room.

"Afternoon girls." Wren walked over to Charlotte's bed and took a note of her vitals. Neither said anything. They looked at each other in fear and disgust. "Can't a nurse do that?" Alison spit out at him. "A nurse could, but I'm doing it. Is there a problem?" Wren was not as polite as he was a few seconds ago. Instead of looking at Ali, Wren looked at Charlotte when he asked that question. Scared, Charlotte responded to him. "No. It's fine." She refused to look him in the eye. "Very well." Wren walked out of the room after awkwardly staring both the girls down for a brief minute.

Ali checked her watch again and realized Emily would probably be waking up soon. She told Charlotte she would make sure she was okay and in the morning Charlotte would be back home and comfortable. Most importantly, she would be away from Wren.


	36. Chapter 36

**Friday Noon**

"Look, Spencer I wouldn't be asking this if it wasn't an emergency, okay?" Alison pleaded.

"Ali, you want me to spend the night with Charlotte?" Spencer was confused.

"You're not sharing a cot with her. You just need to stay until Wren leaves." Alison made the matter seem urgent. She needed one of her friends to stay there so she knew Charlotte was safe. "Why Wren?" Spencer asked.

"I think he's the one who pushed Charlotte." Alison knew speaking ill of Wren would probably upset Spencer but she needed to be honest. "Ali, no. Okay? He wouldn't do that." Spencer stumbled trying to find the right words. "Oh really? Because he lied about being on the phone with her, and he knew all the details of that night." Alison added.

"He's supposed to know as many details as possible, that's his job." Spencer was getting agitated by Alison's accusation. "No Spencer. He has a motive and everything. I can't get into it now, but I'm begging you. Please just stay with her until he leaves. His shift is over at 11." Spencer was about to ask how Alison knew that, but she wasn't shocked. And quite honestly, if it were here in Ali's shoes, she would know every detail possible. "Where will you be?" Spencer questioned.

"Uh…I'm taking care of Emily." Alison answered nervously.

"We can take care of her too Ali." Spencer felt like prying. She had noticed all the looks and touches between her two friends lately. It was always the same with them. Alison knew about Emily's feelings and the girls all knew as well. They needed to keep an eye out for Emily because sometimes she was blind to Ali's ways.

"I know you can, but I have stuff planned and…" Alison was at a loss for words.

"And what?" Spencer looked at her phone, feeling like part of their conversation got cut off because Alison usually never had a problem with her words.

"And…I don't know. Why are we playing twenty questions right now? Can you stay with Charlotte or not?" Alison hated being rude to her friends but she didn't want to ruin the surprise. Plus she wanted Emily to be the one to talk their friends about all this. Spencer was taken back by Alison's tone. This was typical Ali though, she thought to herself. Using others to get what she wanted. "Uh, I can't. I have plans with Toby." Spencer stuck up for herself and spited Alison for using that nasty tone. "Fine." Alison hung up the phone. She felt bad for being rude but dialed Hanna's number next.

—

With Emily home and Hanna and Aria watching Charlotte for the night Ali felt a little less stressed. She lead Emily slowly into the living room. Inside, Alison's Pottery Barn living room was turned into a magical child-like fortress. She made a comfy home out of her couches, had snacks packed all along their fort and piles of movies lined up and ready to be watched. There were also loads of candles lit. It was probably too many. If any fireman walked in right now he'd probably go into cardiac arrest, but she figured she could never have too much.

"Ali did you do all this for me?" Emily was stunned. She felt better after eating a light lunch and sleeping off the anesthesia. She was excited to come back home and relax for the night, and she was happy to hear Charlotte woke up too. Overall, it seemed like a pretty good day.

"Maybe…" Alison beamed, proud of her hard work. She had to thank her friends too for running out and getting the supplies. It was one less thing off her plate. "This is incredible. Thank you." Emily said kissing Ali's forehead. Alison lead her to the couch and got her comfortable. "What's the occasion?" Emily asked.

"Well, you had your surgery and I wanted to make things as easy as possible for you." Alison started off with that. "Ali you didn't have to do all this." Emily was shocked that she went through such great lengths all for a simple surgery. "There's something else too." Ali added.

Emily looked encouragingly at the blonde. What else could there have been? "I know we've sort of taken our friendship to this new level…" Alison was nervous. "But I don't think I ever got to ask you officially, if you wanted to be my girlfriend." Emily let out a sigh of relief and happiness. She started to laugh. "Of course" Emily smiled. She could officially call Alison DiLaurentis her girlfriend.

—

The hospital was quiet this time of night. Most people were sleeping, despite it only being around 9 pm. Hanna and Aria sat close together against the wall trying their best not to stare at Charlotte. They weren't necessarily afraid of her anymore, but they didn't exactly want to spend a few hours in a room alone with her. Charlotte thanked them for staying, knowing the real reason Ali had left. Hanna wasn't as shocked to hear Alison's theory about Wren and neither was Aria. The two decided to come together and babysit Charlotte. She appreciated their presence. Hopefully Wren wouldn't pull anything while they were there.

"So Charlotte, anything exciting going on?" Hanna asked. Aria elbowed her in the arm.

"Hanna!" She whispered. Hanna immediately returned the blow to her arm with a confused glance. She was just trying to make conversation!

Charlotte laughed. "Well, besides being pushed out of a bell tower, I'd say life's been pretty boring lately."

"Sorry…" Aria apologized both for Hanna and for Charlotte's unfortunate incident.

"Don't be. Boring is kind of a good thing." Charlotte said nonchalantly.

"Do you really think Wren was the one who pushed you?" Hanna bluntly asked again.

Aria repeated herself by yelling at Hanna and hitting her again.

"It's okay Aria, I actually appreciate the honesty." Charlotte chuckled. "And to be honest, I don't know. I mean, I wouldn't be surprised if it was him, but it could have been someone else." Charlotte wasn't certain and the last thing she wasn't to do was cause anymore problems in this town. She just wanted to lay low and be with her family.

"Did it feel like a guy or a girl?" Hanna asked.

"If I had to guess I would say a guy."

Charlotte quickly ended her sentence when she heard footsteps outside the door. Hanna and Aria noticed her shift, and perked up. Their posture changed, making themselves appear a bit bigger and stronger as they looked towards the door. Right on cue, Wren walked in. "Good evening ladies. Just doing my final rounds before I leave for the night." Hanna looked at her watch. Wren wasn't supposed to leave until 11 Ali said. Why was he leaving early?

"Heading out early?" Hanna questioned. Wren was taken back by the sudden interest in his whereabouts. "As a matter of fact yes, I have plans." Wren didn't look the girls in the eye when he answered.

"Hot date?" Hanna pressed him.

"I have to finish a research paper, for an online class I took." Wren seemed uninterested in this conversation. Charlotte and Aria uncomfortably watched the interaction unfold. "What kind of class?" Hanna continued.

"Pharmaceutical." Wren answered again. He turned to Charlotte. "Everything looks good. As long as it stays that way you should be free to go home in the morning." He briefly smiled and then walked out. "Have a great night." Before the girls could say anything about the awkward encounter they just had, Wren walked back in. "By the way, visiting hours are over." He winked and then exited for the last time. The girls all looked at each other definitely creeped out by Wren's demeanor.


	37. Chapter 37

**Hi babies. I'm changing it up, because why not?! Love you all!**

Wren walked out of the hospital and into his car. He took off his jacket and loosened his tie. He turned no lights on, keeping his car dark- the way he liked it. The radio was on playing some older song he was unfamiliar with. It was just starting to drizzle, the cool fall air, reminding him of weather back in London. He looked around for a while, making sure no one was around to see him sulk in his car. The girls were onto him. He needed something to throw them off his trail. He didn't understand their newfound obsession with him. Truth be told, Wren spent many nights with Charlotte in Radley. He felt sorry for her. What a horrible life, to be locked away in that sanitarium, for years, with visits only from Jessica DiLaurentis. When Mona got sent there, he thought it would be a good chance for the two to make friends. They were close in age and had a lot in common. He would listen in on the two girls' conversations and that's when he found out about the game. He had found out a lot about the games, without Charlotte's knowledge of course. He was intrigued, and a little inspired. Wren thought about taking over the game when Charlotte was readmitted to another facility after the game was over, but he wasn't sure he wasn't to do it alone. He wasn't as close to the girls anymore. His partner needed to be close, someone the girls trusted. And that's when it came to him. The perfect person to be his partner. He had to hand it to himself, having a partner was great. When one of them couldn't get to a certain place, the other did. That's why Wren wasn't lying when he told Alison, he didn't push Charlotte. Wren turned the car on finally and headed towards the DiLaurentis house. His other half was waiting for him.

—-

Ali and Emily were in the middle of watching one of the five movies Ali forced her friends to pick up. Okay, so they were in the middle of a hot make out session, too, but could you blame her? Having Emily Fields officially say yes to being her girlfriend was enough excitement for the day. She knew people didn't really buy movies anymore, but Ali liked to be a little old fashioned sometimes. Plus, she figured if she gave Emily a list of options the two would never decide on a movie, so narrowing down their choices made things a bit easier. Alison finally felt her life form a complete circle. Her sister was still alive, and well. Her friends helped her out, (which she was going to thank them for) and most importantly, she had a girlfriend, who happened to be the love of her life. The moment couldn't get more perfect. That was until there was a loud bang outside. Both girls jumped, startled from the noise. At the same time, both stood up, to protect the other.

"Em, I can handle it. Sit." Alison instructed. She'd be damned if her fresh out of surgery girlfriend was going to stand up and try to fight whoever was outside. Ali grabbed a modern lamp off of her end table. She took the shade off of it and placed it on the couch. Emily, ignoring Ali's instructions, followed behind for back up. She didn't care how much anesthesia she had this morning, she was focused enough to beat anyone who came close to hurting Ali.

Alison slowly opened the door to find no one outside. Her motion light was on, so she knew someone, or something was around. All she heard was crickets, and the pitter patter of the rain against the roof, and drips from the gutter onto the pile of leaves on the lawn. She looked around not finding the source of the commotion. Suddenly she heard Emily gasp. She looked at her girlfriend and met her gaze. To her surprise, she realized a few dead birds scattered on her driveway, just in front of Emily's car. Written on the hood of the car, in what appeared to be blood, was a note:

 ** _"_** ** _One flew East, one flew West, one flew over the Cuckoo's nest."_**

The two looked at each other in fear. "What the hell?" Alison asked out loud. Emily shook her head, unable to find words. "I need to sit down," was all she could say. Alison immediately grabbed her arm and escorted her back to the couch. "Do you want some water?" Ali asked.

Emily nodded. Ali quickly walked into the kitchen filling a glass with some cool water. She came back and handed the glass to her girl.

"Thank you." Emily said.

"I'm sure we can have one of the guys, clean off your car first thing in the morning." Alison offered, already making plans to take care of the problem. "Dead birds?" Emily questioned, ignoring Alison's thoughtful suggestion. "These messages never get less creepy do they?"

"I'm sorry this ruined our night." Alison was saddened that A knew the perfect timing to show up and kill a mood. To make matters worse the girls' phones rang simultaneously.

Hanna: _Wren left about 20 min ago. Said he had an assignment for a summer class._

Aria: _I don't buy it._

Hanna: _Me neither. Something about farming. He's a doctor._

Aria: _Pharmaceuticals Han._

Alison let the girls know about the most recent A message her and Emily received. Spencer took a while to answer, Alison figured it was because she was having a hot and steamy time with Toby. Hey, at least one of them was getting some action.

Spencer: _Fill me in tomorrow. Ali can we come over in the am?_

Alison: _Sure._

—-

It was early the next morning. Ali rose early, to clean up some of the mess left in the living room. Also she couldn't get much sleep knowing there was a pile of dead birds in her driveway still. Ali was folding a blanket when she heard a knock on the door. It was too early to be one of her friends. Charlotte was getting picked up around noon, and her friends were coming around 10. It would be a stressful morning, but Ali stayed up late washing Charlotte's sheets and making sure her room was comfortable. Alison never pictured herself to be the nurturing type, but here she was fluffing pillows for her sister, and making pillow forts for her girlfriend. Things really had changed.

She opened the door, wearily, to find Spencer, wired from her morning dosage of caffeine. "There should be a limit for how much coffee a person can have before 8 am." Alison joked quietly. Emily was still asleep, tired from staying up with Alison last night. She refused to go to bed until Ali was next to her. "We need to talk." Spencer walked right in.

"Yeah, about those dead birds in my driveway?" Alison laughed again. Despite the sleep deprivation, she still had a sense of humor. "No." Spencer answered seriously.

"Then what?" Alison was genuinely confused. She knew when Spencer was this wired it did neither of them no good to argue. "About Emily." Spencer said. "I know something is going on between you two." Alison was stunned by her friends words. It was true, for the record, but she wasn't sure why Spencer came barging in to accuse her of dating their friend. She had nothing but good intentions. "What?" It was the only thing that came out of Ali's mouth.

"Look, I know Emily won't say it to you so I will. Whatever you have planned, whatever you're doing needs to stop. You can't use Emily's feelings for you whenever you need something Ali. She cares about you." For a moment, Alison appreciated how concerned Spencer was for her friend. She appreciated the balls it took to come and yell at Ali, but that all faded to anger. Spencer had no idea what she was talking about. "You have no idea what you're talking about Spencer."

"Oh really? I've noticed all the little touches, and hand holding. And what was all of this?" Spencer exclaimed, pointing to the living room. "You're trying to separate us already. You took Emily, and had her move in, and now you're making us babysit your sister!" Spencer was insanely wired this morning. The last time Alison saw her like this was when she was on her pills. "Are you speeding again Spencer?" Alison was serious.

"Oh my God!" Spencer laughed out loud, at the ridiculous accusation.

"You're brilliant Ali. You got Hanna and Aria to talk to Charlotte and listen to her, and now they're all on your side. Emily doesn't deserve this." Spencer was shouting. Alison was trying to get a word in, but knew her chances were slim.

"Emily doesn't deserve what?" Emily asked in third person. Ali looked over apologetically. She hated that this was how she had to wake up. Spencer looked at Alison, who gave a look back, that said, _tell her._ Spencer swallowed hard, not wanting to have this conversation with Emily. Emily was angry with the way Spencer entered the house and just accused Ali of insane things. "Cat got your tongue Spencer? I heard what you said. Ali isn't using me. In fact, we're dating!" Emily blurted out. Spencer looked confused, and turned to both of them. "You're dating?" She asked.

"Yeah." Emily answered. "You can never be happy for me, can you? I don't know how many times Alison has to prove to you all that she's a different person. She had Hanna and Aria watch Charlotte because Wren is dangerous, and we had a date night." Emily admitted.

"Em.." Spencer shrunk down, feeling horrible about her accusation. Alison stood tall, proud of her amazing girlfriend for sticking up for her and proving Spencer Hastings wrong. "I'm sorry. I didn't know."

"No you didn't. But you came here and accused Ali of horrible things anyway." Emily said, still stinging from the prior conversation. "Em, I'm really sorry. I was just trying to look out for you." Spencer was frantic. "I can take care of myself." Spencer stood, in the hall, not sure of what to do. "I think you should leave." Emily concluded.

"What about everyone coming over?" Spencer pleaded.

"They can fill you in." Emily said rudely. Spencer took a moment and nodded, walking out the door. She turned to say something but Emily already slammed the door shut.


	38. Chapter 38

_HIIII SOOO ITS BEEN QUITE A WHILE BUT HERE I AM! IM BACK MY LOVELIES! SORRY IM SO SORRY BUT SCHOOL KICKED MY BUTT THIS SEMESTER AND I LITERALLY DIDNT HAVE TIME TO BREATHE BUT HERE I AM AND MY SCHEDULE NEXT SEMESTER IS 11000 TIMES BETTER :) HERES TO A NEW YEAR AND MORE EMISON FANFICS XOXOX_

"Where's Spencer?" Aria asked. Emily and Alison looked at each other unsure of who would explain the explosive fight that occurred just a while ago. "She came at us this morning accusing Ali of things that weren't true. So we told her to leave." Emily finally said. Aria and Hanna nodded not wanting to get in the middle of things. They only had a short amount of time to talk with each other before Charlotte was coming home. Truth be told, Hanna and Aria had a decent time with Charlotte last night. That had certainly been in worse company before and despite her past, Charlotte seemed to be really genuine.

"Caleb is on his way, he's going to get rid of the birds." Hanna changed the conversation, plus she was too busy texting Caleb to deal with Ali and Emily's drama right now. "Thanks." Ali said. Ali was stressed. She was feeling bloated and slightly more pregnant than usual and to make matters worse, she was completed nauseated by everything that was going on. Charlotte was getting picked up in two hours, she had been up all morning cleaning to make sure the house was spotless, except for the dead birds in the driveway, but now she had to deal with one of her best friends accusing her of being a terrible person yet again, and now Wren. "What happened last night?" Ali continued. She wasn't sure her stomach could handle any shocking news, but she decided to ask. She needed to know. "Well before Wren came in the room last night, we were talking to Charlotte and she thinks it was a guy who pushed her." Aria informed the girls. Hanna chimed in as well, "She said she wouldn't be surprised if it was Wren."

Alison looked sick. "Why?" It was the only word that could exit her mouth right now. Before anyone could respond Alison answered her own question. "She told me she had a thing for Wren, back in Radley. Apparently, they spent a lot of time together."

"I don't get it. If Charlotte liked Wren and Wren liked Charlotte why would he try to kill her?" Emily questioned. None of this was making sense. "She said she kissed Wren one night but he pulled away because he was with Melissa." Alison answered her girlfriend.

"So would Wren kill Charlotte because of Melissa?" Aria was trying to fill in the blanks. They all were trying. "Over a kiss?" Hanna sounded sarcastic. "No way." The knock on the door scared the girls. Alison walked over to answer it, appreciative of the fresh air. Caleb stood at the front doorstep with a pair of gloves, a shovel and a few garbage bags. "I just wanted to let you know I'm here to clean the birds up." It was almost comical the way he stood there bringing his own supplies to remove a bunch of dead, bloody birds off her property. "Thank you" Alison responded. "I didn't realize there were so many birds." Caleb said turning to look at the large mess behind him. "Yeah, apparently stalking us isn't as time consuming anymore. This A must breed birds in their spare time." Alison joked. Caleb smiled and walked down the steps. Hopefully he had enough garbage bags.


	39. Chapter 39

The girls finished their conversation a little while ago and now Alison was on her way to bring Charlotte home. Emily opted to stay home and finish getting the house ready, and to also give Charlotte and Alison some sisterly bonding time. She planned on heading over to Hanna's for a while after to give the two girls optimum time together. Spencer had been texting her all day trying to apologize but Emily didn't want to hear it right now. Alison was appreciative of everything her mermaid did for her. It would be nice to have a few minutes alone with Charlotte before the craziness of their daily life came back.

Charlotte was dressed sitting on the edge of her bed staring at the door. She couldn't wait to leave the hospital. Seeing Wren every day, feeling vulnerable and scared. She wished her brain could remember more details from the night. Was she certain it was Wren? No. But after everything Wren had said and the way he had acted towards Charlotte in the recent years, Charlotte had her suspicions. Charlotte could vividly remember one night at Radley in particular.

It was a rainy night in Radley. Charlotte was fully transitioned and had just stopped taking classes at UPenn. She was so grateful to be taking classes there but she quickly became bored and was way ahead of all her peers. She was playing the game fully and that kept her busy most of the time but she missed people. She missed compassion and contact. She craved the touch of another person. She hadn't been hugged since Jessica DiLaurentis visited and told her the good news about UPenn.

Wren had been visiting her and helping her talk about life. He listened when no one else would. He was a great ear, and he was relatively close to her age, which was a nice change. Charlotte enjoyed having Mona in Radley for a while too but Wren was different. She didn't love him, not by any means. But she got this feeling, like a dark pit in her stomach filled with desire.

But that night, Wren came into her room. It was late; most of the staff had left and the ones who were still working, didn't care what went on. The night shift at Radley was a joke. Wren walked in and talked to Charlotte on one of her off days. She was feeling particularly vulnerable and talked to Wren about missing her "friends". Specifically, Alison. She didn't tell Wren everything but she felt comfortable talking to Wren, more so than anyone else…that was besides Ali.

Wren sat and listened and at times he even placed his hand right on top of Charlotte's as a sign of comfort…or intimacy. Charlotte leaned in and kissed Wren. For a while, he kissed her back. He ran his fingers down her hair and kissed her neck. Charlotte was thrilled to be with someone finally, but in a second Wren flipped a switch. He went from hook up hottie to borderline Radley patient. Charlotte had seen patients more sane in the room next to her. Wren pulled away immediately and stared deep at Charlotte. His eyes were black. Charlotte was unsure if they had broken a boundary…in a sense what they were doing was completely unprofessional and could cost Wren his job. Maybe it was better to end things before they got themselves in deeper trouble.

Charlotte stared at the door as Alison walked past. She was filling out discharge forms with one of the nurses at the nurses' station. Charlotte needed to get out of here. Her memories from Radley were coming back to her. Charlotte hated being institutionalized and being here in the hospital was bringing up all her old feelings and bad memories. Even thinking about Wren and Radley was enough to make her start to feel sick. As Alison was finishing up, Charlotte gained more of her memory back from that night at Radley, and this time she started to shake remembering the awful experience she had with Wren.


End file.
